Fidelity Investments has unveiled a major upgrade to its US retail stock trading platform as competition intensifies among brokers for self-directed investors.
The new Fidelity Trader+ service, announced Thursday, will give active clients access to real-time analytics, customisable charting, and portfolio tracking tools that were previously the preserve of institutional and high-net-worth investors. Fidelity also said it is cutting the minimum investment for separately managed accounts to $5,000 — down from $100,000 — and will offer fractional access to products such as certificates of deposit.
Josh Krugman, senior vice president of brokerage at Fidelity, said:
“These are some of our better customers in terms of engagement and activity, and they have a unique set of needs.”
Retail traders reshape markets
The move comes as retail investors continue to represent a growing share of global market activity. Research from Vanda suggests individuals now account for around 8% of daily US stock trading by value, and double that for high-profile names such as Nvidia and Tesla. Citadel Securities puts the figure closer to 20% when looking at buzzy IPOs.
The surge of activity since the pandemic has forced all major brokers to innovate. Moomoo has been winning allocations on blockbuster IPOs, while Robinhood recently launched Robinhood Social, embedding community features into its app to build what CEO Vlad Tenev calls a “financial super-app.”
Meanwhile, global giants such as Interactive Brokers and eToro are also stepping up their offerings. Interactive Brokers continues to position itself as the go-to platform for sophisticated traders with global market access and low-cost margin trading. eToro, on the other hand, has leaned heavily into its social trading model, allowing users to copy the strategies of top-performing peers while expanding into asset classes such as crypto and ETFs.
Competition driving innovation
With 24-hour trading, fractional investing, and advanced analytics becoming standard across platforms, brokers are racing to differentiate themselves. Fidelity’s latest update underscores how even traditional firms are adapting to the fast-changing expectations of retail clients, who increasingly demand the same sophistication as professional traders.
As retail participation remains elevated, the question is whether these innovations will deepen engagement or lead to risks if speculative activity continues to grow. For now, though, one thing is clear: the arms race among brokers is far from over.
Richard is the founder of the Good Money Guide (formerly Good Broker Guide), one of the original investment comparison sites established in 2015. With a career spanning two decades as a broker, he brings extensive expertise and knowledge to the financial landscape.
Having worked as a broker at Investors Intelligence and a multi-asset derivatives broker at MF Global (Man Financial), Richard has acquired substantial experience in the industry. His career began as a private client stockbroker at Walker Crips and Phillip Securities (now King and Shaxson), following internships on the NYMEX oil trading floor in New York and London IPE in 2001 and 2000.
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