Young Australians are flocking to self-directed investing according to CommSec with new accounts increasing by 37 percent year-on-year, taking Australia’s leading digital investment platform to almost 3 million customers.
According to CommSec data , investors under 40 make up nearly half of all CommSec’s customers and 48 per cent of trades are now made via mobile.
The analysis also reveals the popularity of international trading and CommSec Pocket, with new accounts up 96 per cent and 50 per cent respectively over the year to June 30, 2024.
CommSec’s international trading platform offers a fast account set-up experience and easy access to 13 international equity markets including the US, Canada, Japan and the UK, with brokerage rates starting from USD$5 on US markets.
Through CommSec Pocket, investors with as little as $50 can build an investing portfolio over time by choosing from ten themed investment options, providing the opportunity to align their investments to their interests, whether that be tech, sustainability leaders, or the biggest 200 companies on the Aussie market, or globally.
“The growing popularity of our international trading platform and CommSec Pocket points to investor demand for a simple, accessible, low-cost trading experience and we’re pleased to see significant customer growth across both platforms over the past year,” said CommSec Executive General Manager James Fowle.
“With investors under 40 making up nearly half of our 2.9 million customers, CommSec’s low-cost, intuitive and educational investment platform has been built to meet the needs of the next generation of investors. Likewise, our investment in delivering a market-leading mobile experience continues to gather momentum as trading via this channel grows across our customer base,” Mr Fowle added.
Female investors now make up 38 per cent of CommSec accounts, with data indicating that they were more likely to invest in the ASX200 than their male counterparts over the past year.
The CommSec data revealed a number of additional insights into customers:
- 343,000 new CommSec accounts opened in FY241
- The five most traded domestic shares by value2:
- BHP Group Ltd (ASX:BHP)
- Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX:CBA)
- Fortescue Ltd (ASX: FMG)
- Woodside Energy Group Ltd (ASX:WDS)
- Pilbara Minerals (ASX:PLS)
- The five most traded international shares by value:
- NVIDIA Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA)
- Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA)
- ProShares UltraPro QQQ (NASDAQ:TQQQ)
- Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL)
- MicroStrategy Inc (NASDAQ) MSTR
- 5 August 2024 was the highest value trading day since 14 June 2022, coinciding with a 3% drop in the S&P 500 index following a disappointing U.S. employment report.
CommSec is Australia’s leading online broker, offering the best mobile trading solutions for self-directed retail investors and has been recognised by Canstar for its category leading features. CommSec is a subsidiary of the Commonwealth Bank of Australia.
