There has been a lot of coverage in the weekend press
and on the BBC Radio 4 Moneybox programme about Selftrade's
intrusive questionnaire sent to clients. Any clues or views?

Received mine this morning, and think the questions very over the top. Are other brokers doing anything similar?

I closed my account long time ago with this lousy broker

Just seen this. Incredible!

Selftrade Questionnaire

Oh dear, well I only have a few £K with SelfTrade so fingers crossed I won't get a letter. I do also however have my sons trust fund with them... Maybe now would be a good time to change broker.

I'm angry about this, you HAVE to answer the questions or lose control of your money. Once I've done it, as minimally as poss, I shall be changing broker

Have a look at YouInvest ( A.J. Bell, previously Sippdeal) and BestInvest.
They both pay up to £500 to cover transfer fees you may incur.

Or Hargreaves Lansdown upto £1000.

Thanks for your help, appreciated

Further comment:

Here

"Selftrade wishes to announce that, following a strategic review, we have entered into exclusive discussions with the aim of transferring our customers and the Selftrade brand to Equiniti. This process is expected to conclude in Q4 2014, subject to regulatory approval.
We reviewed several offers from interested parties, having uppermost in our mind the need to closely match Selftrades values, customer pricing and service proposition and allow for a seamless transition. We already work closely with Equiniti in a number of areas, including their ongoing provision of custody services to Selftrade and are confident this will be achieved.
We are committed to making any transition as smooth as possible and, in the meantime, it is business as usual with no impact on how you access or use our services."

It gives everyone wishing to leave plenty of
time to leave, Why wait until Q4 to do so!

I think Equiniti charges are the same as Selftrade's. I do occasionally use them for a friend's account. I imagine that it is going to be a bit complicated to migrate the accounts over to Equiniti and will require a fair amount of regulatory paperwork.
Shares Mag use to occasionally run a comparison table of 'Execution only' dealers. I wonder if they still do?

Here is a comparison table :- Compare Execution Only Share Dealing

On edit - I see SAGA are in there!

Which is strange that Equiniti/ShareView isn't on the list.
Equiniti
"Buy and sell shares for just £12.50 with our standard Investment Account dealing

Perfect for anyone trading more regularly, the investment account allows you to trade shares without certificates for a flat fee of just £12.50 per trade. You can also invest in bonds, trusts and gilts."

In answer to Midknight's post above, I see all providers are charging for 'Transfers Out'. So moving your stock to another provider before the Equiniti move would incur a fee per holding (£25 per stock holding in the case of TD & A J Bell.)

Harry - I'm not trying to blow their trumpet, but HL are offering :-

Up to £1,000 cash back as a thank you when you transfer ISAs, funds, shares or pensions to Vantage by 8 May

Albeit a bit tight now!

Not very keen on this bit skinny:
"There is an annual charge to hold funds in Vantage. It is tiered within bands: 0.45% per annum on the first £250,000 of funds".

I try to go with providers which just charge a flat fee per trade. That way there are no surprises at the end of the year!

Harry, as I said - I'm not blowing their trumpet - just offering alternatives.

Btw - they do charge a flat rate fee per share trade?

Yes, £11.95 per trade but cheaper if you are a frequent trader.

Deals previous month Dealing charge
0 - 9 deals £11.95
10 - 19 deals £8.95
20 or more deals £5.95

There maybe cheaper around, but I've used them for 30 years and obviously they are now a FTSE100 company - so hopefully not transient!

Bit like Dalgety, Trafalgar House, Marconi, Hawker Siddeley, Coats Viyella, Ferranti, British & Commonwealth and Polly Peck then!!! ;o))

:-)

Of course, using Equiniti makes life a little easier for the Executors of an Estate as they are one of the two main Registrars, so should be minimal documentation to transfer stock to the beneficiaries. (Assuming we haven't spent it all by then!!)

This is about the best article I have read on the subject, Fairly detailed, too:
Here

Actually, both BestInvest and A.J.Bell also reimburse up to
£500 towards transferring holdings.

I had an account with HL as well until last month and after ten years
left them, Remaining new charges will come inro effect on 2 June.
Look at the new hidden charges and it is not funny.
I received more junk mail from HL than any other financial institution
in the UK, yet they have imposed a new £20 per year charge for
paper statements i.e. £10 plus VAT per paper statement twice a year,
which one used to get gratis. Also have a
peep at their account closing fee and imo outrageous new probate
charges. And if one sells all one's holdings and
wishes to leave, there is also a new account closing
charge. Ha! Their telephone service, once touted
as being answered after five rings is also a thing
of the past, Music has been introduced. Each to his own.
I used to like HL in the old days.

For buying unit trusts only, Chelsea Financial
Services is imo a far better outfit and transparent, too.
But they are not stockbrokers:

ChelseaFS

what about tddirectinvesting ?
any comment, please

was this a case where what is cheap is actually expensive?
surely, the cost of dealing charges is one of the least important aspects

skinny, I looked at the 'up to £1000' transfer offer by HL
and note that it is based on the total sum being transferred
and not per stock. Would not help someone transferring, say,
30 stocks with reasonable or modest values, as most brokers
impose exit charges per stock transferred.

HL Offer

midknight - I mentioned it in the context of the thread - obviously individuals must evaluate 'offers' in light of their own circumstances.

I'm not sure what other provider's charge on Probate valuation, so I don't know how (un)competitive the HL charge of £30 +VAT per stock (min £100 +VAT, max £500 +VAT) is.

Seems the reason for the demise of Selftrade, according to the FT, is that the parent company, Boursorama, is pulling out of the UK.

International Investor article on ST

Interesting article midknight.
(One of the questions on the form they supplied was 'what is your total net worth?'
Yeah, like we are really going to answer that one!)

"(1) Equiniti has run its own platform since 2012, when it took over investment systems developer Peterevans. I believe that prior to taking everything in-house, Equiniti used the same SGSS solution that provides the front-end (trading) for Selftrade, which was developed by Societe Generale, Boursorama’s controlling shareholder. As it happens, the back end (trade settlement) of Selftrade’s current service also runs on the Peterevans system, which may have something to do with why Equiniti was the leading contender for the Selftrade business. Tangled, but that’s par for the course given the slightly convoluted history of Selftrade (formerly known as Squaregain and prior to that Comdirect), which at one point was part-owned by Lloyds TSB, which also used to own Equiniti …"

Musical chairs or what?

HC: re article, Equiniti not my type of outfit either.

Tough titties MN, just have to wait for the next change of ownership then I suspect, what a shower.

I am still investigating my options. I only need execution only service, so Equiniti are pretty much on a par with Selftrade. I wonder if a few of the dealing houses might be offering a few tempting offers to lure us onto their trading platforms over the next few months.

HC: A J Bell (formerly Sippdeal) may suit you. No admin charges
for shares. Low dealing charges. Transfer charges paid.
Mentioned over the weekend in this article. See last paragraph:

Telegraph

Selftrade signs agreement with Equiniti

On 2 May 2014, we announced that Selftrade had entered into exclusive discussions to transfer the customer portfolio to Equiniti.

We are pleased to tell you that these discussions have been successful and we have now signed an agreement with Equiniti, with a view to completing the transfer by the end of 2014, subject to regulatory approval.

Equiniti was chosen as the best purchaser for our customers and they met with our main goal of finding a buyer who would be able to make the transfer as seamless as possible for you. We have worked closely with Equiniti for a number of years and believe that they are best placed to achieve this. Equiniti has already confirmed that you will continue to receive the same competitive pricing you get now and they will also be improving your customer service experience and the facilities Selftrade currently offers with newer technology.

As a Selftrade customer you already have a relationship with Equiniti – it provides the technology platform on which Selftrade is built. In addition, Equiniti provide financial custody and settlement services for Selftrade. They work with around 50% of the FTSE 100, supporting 18 million shareholders and 7.4 million pension scheme members.

Mark Taylor, the Managing Director of Equiniti's Investment Services division, has committed that "as well as maintaining the pricing for Selftrade's customers and waiving any transfer fees for 12 months, Equiniti will look to combine the strengths of Equiniti and Selftrade to develop a sophisticated product and investment platform which reflects the needs of the customer".

More

I think ST should offer a free transfer NOW to those wishing to
leave, as they will probably leave anyway after the recent fiasco.
It would also save them a lot of administrative work, though I
don't credit them with foresight!

I am hearing that they have started another round of requests for personal information.

They have made it even worse this time around by demanding "certified" documentation, the time and costs of such to be borne by the customer.

Oh, and the threat of blocking accounts again. Notice of this given? Just a week!!!

Are you sure? It's not long to the transfer to Equiniti, so I can't see them going through too many unnecessary hoops. I'm with Selftrade and have not had any further requests..........yet.

Which is why I find it rather odd.

55011 - AFAIK only customers living abroad are now asked to provide such
documentation, which, because of money laundering regulations, is understandable.
I haven't heard of UK customers being subjected again to the ludicrous questionnaires
etc which were discarded after the hallabaloo last time.
Also, it seems ST customers will be able to transfer out to another broker free of exit
charges if they do so within 12 months of the Equiniti takeover. Apparently all ST
personnel will be retained so it might be business as usual, though I wouldn't be surprised
if Equi introduce new rules and charges eventually.

HC - since I last posted here, I did look into what AJ Bell offers, but left it alone.

midknight

What put you off AJB?

55011 - Their customer service did not inspire.

ONE OF THE BEST BROKER COMPANY AT ONE TIME
FOR TWO YEARS THEY WANTED DETAILS,REFUSED,AS ALL DETAILS WERE GIVEN ,STILL SENDING LETTERS.THEY WERE TAKING MONEY,BUT FREEZED THE ACCOUNT
NOW LOUSY COMPANY,WE CLOSED OUR ACCOUNTS WITH THEM

I binned the letter.

New info today from Selftrade:

"Important information regarding the transfer to Equiniti - for your immediate attention

As you are aware, Selftrade announced on 2 June 2014 that we had agreed to transfer our customer portfolio to Equiniti, subject to regulatory approval.

Before I give you an update on our next steps and how this will impact you moving forward, I would like to express my personal thanks for your continued loyalty during this period of uncertainty.

We are working closely with Equiniti on the plans for the transfer and anticipate a transfer date of 21 November 2014, completing over the weekend of 22/23 November 2014. We will let you know if this transfer date changes for any reason.

To begin this process, we are now asking for your formal consent to transfer the assets and money in all of your Selftrade dealing account(s) that have the same account number to Equiniti, together with the associated information we hold about you and your Selftrade dealing account(s), assets and money, including your nominated bank account details, direct debit instructions and proof of address.

You will shortly receive in the post important information based on the type of account you hold with us, to help you consider your options. Please refer to the letter for any information which is specific to your Selftrade account.

There are two ways you can let us have your consent to the transfer, which we would ask you to do by 17 October 2014:

1. Log in to each dealing account and give your consent online via our website at www.selftrade.co.uk/equinititransfer; or
2. Complete, sign and return the transfer consent/instruction form for each dealing account that was sent in the post.
Before you make your decision, please refer to the Transfer Fact Sheet together with answers to some Frequently Asked Questions which we have also sent with your letter. Please read these documents carefully as they contain important information about the transfer, your options for your account type(s), and what happens if you take no action.

To consent to the transfer, you will also need to accept Equiniti's customer Terms & Conditions which are available at www.equinitiselftrade.com/transfer-information. Equiniti's Terms & Conditions are in line with those you currently have with Selftrade and we have sent you a summary of the main differences you need to be aware of.

If you choose not to consent to the transfer, you can instruct us to close your dealing account(s) using any of the methods above. You will have to choose the same option for all of your dealing accounts that have the same account number.

Please make your choice by 17 October 2014 this will enable us to manage your response most effectively."

On the website it says November 14th deadline.

Doesn't inspire any confidence.

How would we know if the website was not being used for improper purposes?

I think whatever they say, or say they will do,
going by their history, saying good-bye to them
may be a propitious move!

EQUINITY

RUBBISH REGISTRARS,AND BLOOD SUCKERS.

THINK TWICE BEFORE YOU MOVE YOUR ACCOUNT

"RUBBISH REGISTRARS".....I don't agree. I have had far greater problems dealing with Capita than I have with Equiniti.

ST are giving customers the option of transferring to Equiniti
and testing what it offers over a 12-month period and they will
still be able to transfer out to another outfit free of exit charges
if they are not satisfied. I think that is a fair offer, whatever has
gone on in the past. No need for anyone to shout.

Also, if a customer wishes to close the selftrade account, there'll be no transfer out fees, however it says this could take "several weeks".

The trading platform at ST has been OK. Their limit order
feature is, on the whole, very good and reliable, and in some
ways superior to that at other brokers I have been with.
The admin side is what has caused some problems, so I wouldn't call them lousy.
No one is perfect. It is Equiniti not Equinity.
I have yet to find a broker that is 100% perfect in every respect
so I would not rubbish ST or Equiniti.

Midnight.

I agree.

But also use Barclays and CMC and haven't had problems with either.

I am transferring majority of a small amount of residual stock to Barclays.

Simpler than expected and I should have done so years ago to make accessing of accounts easier.

-------

But find, Banks, Brokers Tech sites always courteous , even if I don't always get what I want!

I have a dealing account with Seltrade for my Sipp with Sippdealxtra as the administrator. I have just received an e-mail from the latter saying they will not offer their Sipp with Equiniti and will send me a letter setting out further options to those in an earlier Selftrade letter. Has anyone received their letter from Sippdealxtra , what are the options and any thoughts on the best way forward? thanks H

Sutherlh1 - Imiweb might meet your needs for your Sipp and ST should be able to arrange the transfer.

Thanks Midnight, also with A J Bell as Sippdealxtra, H

SELFTRADE

BLOOD SUCKERS

Suther,

Try Barclays.

They have SIPP accounts.

I have always found them helpful and I could at least understand the forms. Also act as administrator for ISA accounts and fees acceptable.

yes Fred, agree, I have mine and wife's ISA with Barclays. So looking somewhere else for my Sipp so as not to put all eggs in one basket, H

Regarding transfers

I am transferring my Sipp investments to AJ Bell You Invest from Selftrade for simplicity as AJ Bell are the administrator, otherwise I need to find another.
Thanks all for comments, H

Selftrade ceases to be a broker this weekend.

Realy? hope no one has lost money with them.

A/C's transferred: http://http://www.selftrade.co.uk/

No. They are closing their brokerage. All accounts are transferring to other providers.

I have/had an account on Selftrade, which I "manage".

No problem with closure of accounts, transfers or one being switched to Equiniti .

Functions OK.

Selftrade had a trading platform that I found more informative and versatile than those of some of its (cheaper) competitors.

It is now down to the way the future Equinity handles the client relationship. I wonder whether the TUPE rules have been invoked?

If not up to scratch, there is a free transfer-out period which could be activated.

Fiddly access to "new" site.

One significant loss is that the share quote no longer shows the max market size available at that time.

Also no longer able to get a "buy" quote if insufficient funds to cover it, or to get a "sell" quote if insufficient stock to cover it. Was a most useful feature of the old system in testing the market, especially where liquidity was greatly variable.

Yes, I agree. Very basic at mo, but suspect things will get better as the platform is updated. I think it's basically the Equiniti operating system but under the Selftrade banner, which I reckon will eventually migrate to the Equiniti system proper in time.

After having been with them for years, I have transferred out
since my last post here, basically because of the Selftrade
approach to customers since their ill-fated questionnaires were sent out.
Incidentally, if any customer here did not send for their Transfer to Equiniti
chunky booklet, in future one will have to answer such questions.

Well, it has collapsed already.

Two different sets of id/passwords forms, neither of them working.

Time to transfer out I think.

55, a stitch in time...
I wouldn't have gone to any outfit Selftrade recommended.

I left this lot years ago and can't believe people have stuck with them over the years, always being taken over etc which has never been good for continuity of service. Good luck with Equiniti when it settles down.

55011....there are always going to glitches at the start of a new service. Of course it's up to you if you want to persevere, but a faultless start was never going to happen, imo.

At least it is not the only brokerage account I have, so I can still place business elsewhere...........

Legally, with all the time (and the extension) there has been to prepare for the Equinity/Selftrade deal implementation, a court would surely uphold the notion that it would be reasonable to expect a seamless changeover.

Unable to acess a/c. On trying to log in, asked for usual a/c no. D.O.B. and pin, then asked for member user name and password which I have not been asked for beforeand did nor know. On trying to access :FORGOTTEN PASSWORD; a message of -sorry not able to process your request contact our team on 0845 0700 720- On phoning message YOU ARE IN A QUEUE One for 20 mins and another for 30 mins , still no answer. I have not been able to access a/c or trade. Very unsatisfactoy. Anybody else having problems?

Seems to work pretty well for me. Second time of logging in it only asks for 3 random PIN digits. Worth checking some of the personal details within the account as it seems the SMS or e-mail alert instructions have not been carried forward to the new platform. Also have discovered that the form W-8BEN for trading US stocks has an expiry date, so will need to be renewed.

humpback:
I just filled in the details on the left of the screen..a/c d.o.b. pin. I didn't fill in the other side...member username, pass, as, to be honest, I didn't understand why, but I get into the account o.k.

Thanks juan. That worked for me too. Now for the 3 rules . 1.Do not lose money. 2.Do not lose money. 3.Do not lose money.

I managed to access my personal account, but can't access the investment club (which I am in the process of closing anyhow) account which is blocked.

Tried twice yesterday to get through, but had to give up on both occasions. I also completed a contact us form (no response), and now I have sent an email via the account I can access.

Nightmare.

After being on hold for 20 minutes, I thought I should try option 1 - to place a trade instead of option 3, customer services, but I just hear the same awful music.... I wonder if this is going to be any quicker?

That worked, 10 minutes to talk to someone, who sounded soooooo sad, but she dealt with unblocking the account straight away. Fantastic.

I stopped trading US equities with selftrade as the W8Ben form they kept on sending me back. I'm waiting for it to calm down and will then transfer my ISA and my sons Trust elsewhere. I was thinking of going to TD Waterhouse or TD Investing as their known in the UK.

Well I'm locked out and customer services now say I've got to verify who I am before the account can be unlocked, this means new Id submission in the form of verified copies of passport, utility bill and bank details. Not at all happy now....

I accept what has been said about teething problems, but this is not
the sort of business in which there should be such problems at any time
or on an ongoing basis. Similarly, deadlines about so many things
relating to the merger and the launch of the new venture kept changing.
It just does not inspire confidence. My transfer out took about 10 weeks
and the residual cash was transferred out only yesterday.

And of course, the worse the story you all tell of your crappy adventures, the bigger the stampede and the more massive the queue, the more pissed off the staff become, the greater the delays, etc, etc.

I'm glad I don't trade with Selftrade. I wish to best of luck to all of you on here who are trying to extract yourself from them.

Paultrad: What were the events which led up to you getting 'locked out'?

That generally happens with most financial web sites when you try your username/password incorrectly, say three times on the trot.
If that was the case, then the member of staff who is telling you to resubmit all of your ID stuff again, is surely just being damn awkward.

Selftrade explicitly said on their website that those members who had not completed the personal details questionnaire sent out a while ago, would be locked out until they have presented them to the new Equiniti team. I know it's frustrating, but it was careful in pointing this out. This particular form was to verify your identity and to update your personal details.......not the form which asked ridiculously intrusive details about your wealth and investing habits.

I didn't fill in the form and thankfully, I'm not locked out. I try to be real careful in putting my details on the site to log on. It's easy to make a mistake.

If they lock me out at this time, it will be a disaster.

Some bizarre tales and experiences here.

I can't withdraw anything now. They wont allow it although they will allow me to fund the account.

Why not?

First they wanted me to prove it was my bank account that was on their screen which I've always had, so I've done this and they sent me a message saying that's ok. So I go to withdraw and it wont let me saying "source of funds" or something like.
Just kept on the phone line and can't get through and my messages not answered.

Have a look at the link in post 92 above.
I just had a look there, and there are more
similar stories there.
I have now closed all my accounts and everything
is running so smoothly that I wish I had done so years ago.
It is really only after moving that I have realised fully what I was missing.
One of the best investment decisions I have made so far this year.

Where did you move to?
I can't get anything out.

IWeb - their service is an eye-opener
after having been with ST for more than a decade.

Thanks midnight.

They've sorted it out at their end now. Wasn't a nice position to be in though.

I note that IWeb are increasing their initial account opening registration fee for
new customers from £25 to £200 from March 16th. I am quite pleased with
what they offer. They did get a lot of customers from Selftrade, including me.
Well worth the move for me. And worthwhile savings if one trades regularly.

Pay to put business their way???? You have got to be kidding!?

HC - I was with Comdirect, Squaregain and ST for nearly 15 years.
The ST trading platform was good but only after moving away
have I realised what I was, in fact, missing.
But I got fed up with their admin and that intrusive questionnaire was the last straw.
With the benefit of hindsight, the questionnaire fiasco has turned out
to be a blessing in disguise for me, as all my stocks were transferred free of charge
and I only paid the £25 IWeb registration fee. No ongoing charges after that.
Don't know what's going on at ST now.

I stayed with Equiniti. I don't trade much, but I prefer it to the old selftrade, and they pay the dividends quicker than the old selftrade did!

It has a lot more options and I can see things I couldn't before. I like the Economic calendar too.

Yes seems o. k.

up to now. Made several trades no bother.

Guys I'm looking for a shares ISA provider. I'm thinking HL as they appear not to charge for transfer in and no management fee for a shares ISA and reasonable online dealing costs. Any satisfied customers here or should I be looking at other provider/s?
Cheers.

Informative article on brpkers' current charges and offers including ISA deals

Interesting but they don't offer ISA accounts yet.

More about the same with comparison table.

Equiniti: Intention to Float
Equiniti has today announced its intention to carry out an initial public offering (IPO) on the London Stock Exchange by issuing an intention to float announcement.

Full details of the Global Offer will be included in the prospectus expected to be published in due course. It is expected that Admission will take place in October 2015.

Interesting