Charles Schwab launches 24-hour trading to its UK clients

Charles Schwab, one of the world’s largest online brokerages, with a $146.0 billion market cap has launched 24-hour trading in US equities, to its international client base, including those in the UK.

24 hour US trading

In a move that could help to reshape the landscape of international equity trading, Charles Schwab announced access to round-the-clock US equity trading for all its clients worldwide.

The expansion allows Schwab customers to trade the S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 stocks 24 hours a day, five days a week, through the firm’s thinkorswim platform.

This development is a direct evolution from Ameritrade’s groundbreaking introduction of 24/5 trading back in 2018.

Since it acquired TD Ameritrade in 2020, Schwab has refined and expanded those capabilities, culminating in this overseas rollout, following a series of pilot programs in late 2024.

Pilot programs revealed insights into investor behaviour

Trading peaks occurred during the first and final hours of the overnight sessions, mirroring patterns seen in traditional market hours.

Tech giants dominated the most active stock list, with Tesla, NVIDIA, Palantir, MicroStrategy, and AMD the most widely traded names.

What are the opportunities for UK investors in 24-hour trading?

As Managing Director Richard Flynn explains, Schwab becomes the first major platform offering UK investors around-the-clock access to US markets, complete with dedicated support from licensed professionals.

The Schwab platform eliminates traditional barriers with zero commission on online trades, no service fees, and no currency conversion charges for US equity purchases.

The scale of the business is impressive

Schwab currently manages $10.10 trillion in client assets and processes some 6.0 million daily trades, which is roughly double the volume of their nearest competitors.

James Kostulias, Schwab’s Head of Trading Services, highlighted that the rollout reflected the needs of modern traders while maintaining the focus on risk management and education.

Thinkorswim combines sophisticated trading tools with 24-hour support, creating an environment where investors can trade according to their lifestyle, rather than being constrained by traditional market hours.

According to Schwab, this move represents more than just extended trading hours – it’s a significant step toward truly global markets, where time zones no longer limit investment opportunities.

For international investors, particularly those in different time zones from the US, this could fundamentally change how they approach market participation.

Is Schwab alone in offering 24-hour trading?

No, they are not other brokers’ exchanges and alternative trading venues are getting in on the act as well.

The CBOE recently won regulatory approval to offer 24-hour trading in the US and in November the Bermuda-based 24 exchange won qualified approval from the SEC the business is backed by Hedge Fund Point 72’s venture cap arm.

For now, at least there is little institutional demand for additional out-of-hours trading. However, anecdotally at least, there is said to be great interest among day traders in Japan and elsewhere in Asia, who are keen to access what are now the world’s biggest equity markets, in a user-friendly time zone.

There are undoubted benefits to 24-hour trading, however, there are plenty of caveats too. So expect limited liquidity, wide spreads and heightened volatility in the price action.