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?

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".