Stock exchange

On which markets may I invest?

You have direct access to the most important stock exchanges in Europe: Euronext Brussels, Euronext Paris, Euronext Amsterdam, Xetra Frankfurt, London Stock Exchange, the Milan stock exchange, the Swiss stock, the Madrid stock exchange, OMX (Helsinki, Copenhagen, Stockholm) et de beurs van Oslo.

In addition, you also have access to the Canadian market (TSX & TSX Venture) and the American market (NYSE, AMEX, Nasdaq and OTC-BB).

For the American stock exchanges, you also have access to 'Extended Hours Trading', which gives you the possibility to trade not only before, but also after opening hours of the stock exchange.

Besides the traditional stock exchanges, you also have access to trading in options, which is possible on the European option stock exchange (LIFFE), the American option stock exchange (CBOE) and Eurex.

Trading in stocks and bonds is also at your fingertips.

You may find more explanation about the different stock exchanges by clicking on market regulations.

What are real time quotes?

The advantage of "real time" or actual stock market quotes is that they give an immediate picture of the market situation. You see the best demand and supply quotes as they appear on the market.

The opposite of these quotes are the "delayed" quotes that are delayed by 15 to 20 minutes and do not necessarily reflect the price at which your transaction will be conducted.

You may activate or de-activate the Real time quotes yourself via the secure web site in the main menu under Preferences > Quotes.

There are 6 market groups for which you can request real time quotes:
  • Market group 1: Euronext + LIFFE
  • arket group 2: US markets
  • Market group 3: London, Milan, Switzerland
  • Market group 4: Frankfurt
  • Market group 6: Eurex
  • Market group 7 : OMX

    • If you have activated "real time", a check will be done at the end of each calendar month to see whether or not you done 3 transactions for the market group in question.

    If yes, you will not be invoiced on the selected trading account.

    If no, the charges will be debited automatically from your selected trading account.

    More information on the tariffs of the real time quotes is available in our tarifs.

    Below you will find some examples of different situations that can occur on a trading account.

Example real time quotes : Mr Jones has a trading account and activated the real time quotes. What can happen on his trading account?

Mr Jones can activate the real time quotes per market group.

Example 1:
On 3 January 2007, Mr Jones activates the real time quotes on he US markets. He does no transactions in the month January.
In January, there were no transactions executed on the US markets.
This means that by the end of January the cost for the real time quotes on the US markets will be charged on the trading account.

Example 2:
On 3 January 2007, Mr Jones activates the real time quotes on he US markets. He does 3 transactions on the US markets, which are executed in January.
In January 3 transactions were executed for this trading account on the US markets.
This means that by the end of January no costs will be charged for the real time quotes on the US markets on this trading account.

Example 3:
On 3 January 2007, Mr Jones activates the real time quotes on he US markets. He does 2 transactions on the US markets and 1 transaction on Euronext, which are all executed in January.
In January 3 transactions were executed for this trading account, but only two of them were executed n the US markets.
This means that by the end of January the cost for the real time quotes on the US markets will be charged on the trading account.

Example real time quotes: Mr&Miss Jones have each a logon with which they have access to the same trading account. The real time quotes are activated on it. What can happen on the trading account?

Mr. & Miss Jones have each a logon with which they have access to the same trading account. They have both the possibility to opt for real time quotes.

Example 1 :
Mr. & Miss Jones have each a logon with which they have access to the same trading account. On 3 January 2007, Mr. Jones activates the real time quotes for the US markets.
Mr. Jones does 4 transactions on NYSE, which are both executed in January. Miss Jones does no transaction during this month.
In January 4 transactions were executed for this trading account on the US markets.
This means that by the end of January no costs will be charged for the real time quotes on the US markets.

Example 2 :
Mr. & Miss Jones have each a logon with which they have access to the same trading account. On 3 January 2007, Mr. Jones activates the real time quotes for the US markets.
Mr. Jones does 2 transactions on NYSE, which are both executed in January. Miss Jones does no transaction during this month.
In January 2 transactions were executed for this trading account on the US markets.
This means that by the end of January the cost for the real time quotes on the US markets will be charged on the trading account.

Example 3 :
Mr. & Miss Jones have each a logon with which they have access to the same trading account. On 3 January 2007, they each activate the real time quotes separately for the US markets.
Mr. Jones does 4 transactions on NYSE, which are both executed in January. Miss Jones also has two executed transactions on AMEX.
In January 6 transactions were executed for this trading account on the US markets.
This means that by the end of January no costs will be charged for the real time quotes on the US markets.

Example 4 :
Mr. & Mrs Jones have each a logon with which they have access to the same trading account. On 3 January 2007 they each activate the real time quotes separately for the US markets.
Mr. Jones does 3 transactions on NYSE, which are all executed in January. Miss Jones also has one executed transaction on AMEX.
In January 4 transactions were executed for this trading account on the US markets.
This means that by the end of January the cost for the real time quotes on the US markets will be charged once.

How do I settle my trading account?

If you wish to place an order on the stock exchange, you must ensure that you have enough cash on your trading account.
You may settle this by making an internal transfer from your current account to your trading account. This will give you immediate access to capital an allow you to place an order on the stock market.

How do I know whether my transaction has been executed?

If an order has been executed, you may receive confirmation in different ways:

  • The 1st confirmation will be seen in your portfolio. 'Pending positions' bear the letter 'E', which indicates the execution of an order. Click on this letter to get more information about this order.

  • A 2nd way is via SMS and e-mail. You will need to enter your mobile phone number or your e-mail address in the main menu under 'Preferences' on our secure web site.

  • The 3rd way is you receive confirmation the first subsequent workday after the execution of your stock market order via a slip found in the main menu under 'Account information' on our secure web site.
    Moreover, you have the option of receiving the slip electronically (free-of-charge) or by mail (at a fee).

Is day trading possible?

You may conduct 'day trading' without any problems at Keytrade Bank, in other words, if your purchase order has been executed, you may immediately place a sales order. You do not have to wait for the slip to be drawn up.

What is the difference between a stop order and a stop limit order?

Stop Order:
Whenever you place a stop order, your order becomes a market order once the specified rate is reached. You determine this price via a stop price. It is highly likely that the order will be executed, but on the other hand, you have no guarantee with regard to the execution price. You may use a stop order for both purchase and sale.

Example:
You have bought stock at 100 and the rate is currently 98. You would like to hedge against further loss. You place a stop sales order indicating 95 as stop. This means that if the price of the stock falls to 95, you order is activated and appears on the stock market as a market order and will be executed at the market price.

Stop limit order:
Like a stop order, a stop limit order is activated when a specific price is reached. However, a stop limit order changes into a limit order when the price you indicated is reached with as limit, the limit you have entered. If on selling you place a stop limit order, then your stop price and limit must be placed under the BID price. When you are purchasing with a stop limit, your stop price and your limit must be above the ASK price when you place your order.

Exemple:
You bought stock at 100 and the price is currently 98. You would like to hedge against further loss. You place a stop limit sales order and indicate 95 as stop and 93 as the limit. This means that when the price falls to 95, your order is activated and appears on the stock exchange with a sales limit of 93.

Have a look at our Market Rules should additional information be needed about other types of orders.

General risk warning concerning financial instruments

Each financial instrument has its own characteristics ans risks. Please read the General risk warning concerning financial instruments in detail.

How is the BEP calculated?

The break even price (BEP) is a general concept in the financial world, but can be calculated in various ways.

The break even price (BEP) of a position of your trading account is the selling price which should be obtained to reconstitute your start-up capital, taking into account the operations (buy/sell) that you will have carried out on this position. That means that in case of partial sale of your position with profit, your BEP will decrease consequently. Contrary, in case of a sale of your position with capital loss, your BEP will increase.

For a positive BEP
Imagine this situation:
You buy 1000 shares X at € 50. At that moment you will have a BEP of € 50.
However, if you sell 500 shares X at € 65, the BEP will change to € 35.

Calculation

• Buy 1000 * € 50 = € 50.000
• Sell 500 * € 65 = € 32.500
• The total value of the purchase is now reduced with the value of sale and that result will be divided by the number of available shares X in your portfolio.
• € 50.000 - € 32.500 = € 17.500
• € 17.500/500 = € 35

For a negative BEP
Imagine this situation:
You buy 1000 shares Z at € 20. At that moment you will have a BEP of € 20.
However, if you sell 700 shares Z at € 35, the BEP will change to - € 15

Calculation

• Buy 1000 * € 20 = € 20.000
• Sell 700 * € 35 = € 24.500
• The total value of the purchase is now reduced with the value of sale and that result will be divided by the number of available shares Z in your portfolio.
• € 20.000 - € 24.500 = - € 4.500
• - € 4.500/500 = - € 15

Attention: In case that you would liquidate a position one day, and that you would take again a new position on the same share the same day. In this case, the two transactions carried out on the same day will be understood as an activity of "day-trading", and they will be excluded from the calculation of the BEP. Consequently, the calculation of the BEP will continue to consider the values of the preexistent position.

Which are the value dates for the revenue of a sell?

If you wish to use the revenue of a sell, you must take into account the following value dates:

Euronext (Brussels, Amsterdam, Paris) D+3
London stock exchange D+3
Milan D+3
Xetra (Franckfurt) D+2
Switzerland D+3
US markets D+3
European options D+1
US options D+1
Funds D+3 (the value date is
stipulated by the issuer)
Bonds D+3
Currency exchange D+2

What does this mean concretely?

You can have a positive amount on your trading account, whereas the situation of your portfolio is in fact negative due to value dates.
Example: You sell shares on Euronext. This means that the money of your sell order is in fact (according to the table mentioned above) only three working days later available on your trading account. If you use the same amount the same day for the purchase of options, the money for this purchase is taken into account a working day later. Because of this, your account will be negative for 2 value dates and you will have to pay debit interests on the value of your purchase for these two value dates.

You must realise that a value date is equal to a working day.
Example: Friday, you sell shares on Euronext. This means that the money of your sell order is in fact (according to the table mentioned above) available only three working days later on your trading account. In this case, the money will be only available on your trading account on Wednesday.

Attention: If in the above example Monday is a holiday, the cash will only be available Thursday on your trading account.

Regarding equities, a bank holiday counts as a trading day. However, as the banks are closed there cannot be currency exchanges.
Example: You buy Monday (a bank holiday) shares on AMEX without having any dollars on your trading account. This means that the amount of the purchase is in fact taken into account on Thursday. The conversion of euro to dollars on your trading account can only happen on Tuesday, whereas your purchase was already carried out on Monday. Your account will be negative for one value date and therefore you will have to pay debit interests.

If you wish to transfer money from your trading account to your current account you must also take into account the table mentioned above.
Example: Monday, you sell shares on Euronext. This means that the money of your sell order is in fact (according to the table mentioned above) available three working days later (in this example Thursday) on your trading account. Therefore, you can only transfer cash on Thursday without having to pay debit interests.