Share Trading comparison
nabtrade vs Pepperstone
nabtrade and Pepperstone look like competitors on paper, but they're actually selling completely different products. nabtrade is a traditional CHESS-sponsored broker where you buy and hold real ASX shares under your own HIN. Pepperstone is a CFD provider — you never own the underlying asset, you're trading a derivative contract. That distinction changes everything about fees, risk, and what you can actually do with your money.
Choose
nabtrade
if…
- ›You want to own real ASX shares under your own HIN with CHESS sponsorship and full legal ownership
- ›You plan to hold investments long-term and need dividend reinvestment plans, franking credits, and CGT reporting
- ›You need access to managed funds, bonds, and IPOs alongside your share trading
- ›You want a bank-backed platform (NAB) with a kids/minor account option and SMSF support
- ›You trade US, UK, German or Hong Kong shares in addition to ASX-listed stocks
Choose
Pepperstone
if…
- ›You want to trade CFDs on leverage — long or short — with tight spreads and no intention of owning the underlying asset
- ›You need zero minimum deposit, no monthly market data fees, and no inactivity fees
- ›You want 24/5 trading hours, a demo account to test strategies, and desktop trading software
- ›You prefer to fund your account via PayPal, credit card, Apple Pay or Google Pay rather than bank transfer
- ›You trade frequently and want US brokerage from just 0.02 USD per trade
Where they differ
| Fact | nabtrade | Pepperstone |
|---|---|---|
| Product type | Real shares — CHESS-sponsored, individual HIN | CFDs only — no underlying ownership, no HIN |
| ASX brokerage minimum | $9.95 | $5.00 |
| US brokerage minimum | $9.95 USD | $0.02 USD |
| Minimum initial deposit | $500 AUD | $0 AUD |
| CHESS sponsorship | Yes — individual HIN provided | No — custodian model, no HIN |
Verdict
If you want to own real shares and invest long-term, choose nabtrade. If you want leveraged CFD trading, choose Pepperstone — they're not the same thing.
All data points side-by-side
Every verified fact for both platforms. Differences are highlighted.
| Field | nabtrade | Pepperstone |
|---|---|---|
| account structure | ||
| CHESS sponsorship model | chess | — |
| Individual HIN | Yes | — |
| Individual account | Yes | Yes |
| Joint account | Yes | Yes |
| Company account | Yes | Yes |
| Trust account | Yes | Yes |
| SMSF account | Yes | No |
| Kids / minor account | Yes | No |
| asset coverage | ||
| ASX shares supported | Yes | No |
| ASX ETFs supported | Yes | No |
| US shares supported | Yes | No |
| US ETFs supported | Yes | No |
| Other markets supported | United Kingdom (LSE), Germany (Xetra), Hong Kong (HKEx) | US, UK, DE, FR, HK, BE, CH, DK, NO, SE, FI, IE, PT, ES, AT, AU |
| Fractional shares (ASX) | No | No |
| Fractional shares (US) | No | No |
| Options trading | Yes | No |
| CFDs supported | No | Yes |
| Managed funds | Yes | No |
| Bonds supported | Yes | No |
| IPO access | Yes | No |
| costs hidden | ||
| FX spread (AUD/USD) | 80% | 50% |
| FX spread (other currencies) | 80% | 50% |
| Holds USD account | No | Yes |
| FX currency switch trick | — | No |
| Market data fees | $19.95/month | $0/month |
| Conditional order fees | $0 | $0 |
| Phone trade surcharge | $59.95 | — |
| Corporate action fees | — | Not applicable — Pepperstone offers share CFDs only, not real shares. Clients have no entitlement to rights issues, SPPs, takeover offers or shareholder voting. Dividend adjustments are passed through as cash entries on share CFD positions (credited on longs, debited on shorts, with franking credits not passed through). |
| costs visible | ||
| ASX brokerage minimum | $9.95 | — |
| ASX brokerage percentage | 11% | — |
| ASX brokerage threshold | $20,000 | — |
| US brokerage minimum | US$9.95 | — |
| US brokerage percentage | 11% | — |
| Monthly platform fee | — | $0/month |
| Annual platform fee | — | $0/year |
| Inactivity fee | — | $0 |
| Withdrawal fee (AUD) | $0 | $0 |
| Off-market transfer fee | $55 | — |
| identity and trust | ||
| Legal entity name | WealthHub Securities Limited | Pepperstone Group Limited |
| AFSL number | 230,704 | 414,530 |
| Year founded | 2,012 | 2,010 |
| Parent / ownership | National Australia Bank Limited (ASX: NAB) | Privately held. Majority owner FX Group Holdings (Fiona Lock, CEO Tamas Szabo and Andrew Defina) acquired the 60% stake previously held by CPE Capital (formerly CHAMP Private Equity) in 2018; founders Owen Kerr and Joe Davenport retain the remaining 40%. |
| Country of incorporation | AU | AU |
| Public company status | public | private |
| money movement | ||
| Minimum initial deposit | $500 | $0 |
| Minimum subsequent purchase | $0 | $0 |
| Deposit methods | Direct credit / EFT, BPAY, Internal transfer from linked NAB account | PayID, BPAY, bank transfer, debit card, credit card, PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Pay, Neteller, Skrill |
| Settlement period | ASX T+2; US T+1; UK/Germany/HK T+2 | N/A (CFDs are not settled — positions are open derivative contracts marked-to-market continuously, with overnight swap charges in lieu of settlement) |
| Withdrawal time | Instant to linked NAB accounts; 1 business day to other Australian banks | Up to 2 business days for cards, PayID, BPAY and domestic bank transfer; up to 1 business day for PayPal/Neteller/Skrill. |
| platform ux | ||
| iOS app | Yes | Yes |
| Android app | Yes | Yes |
| Desktop platform | No | Yes |
| Demo account | No | Yes |
| Free real-time market data | Yes | Yes |
| Free research reports | Yes | Yes |
| 2FA support | SMS + PIN | authenticator |
| Customer support channels | Phone, Email, Secure messaging (via NAB Internet Banking) | phone, email, live chat |
| Support hours (AU time) | Mon-Fri 8am-6pm AEST/AEDT (contact centre typically 9am-5pm) | 24/5 (Monday morning AEST to Saturday morning AEST), with 18 hours coverage on weekends; Melbourne-based Australian support team available during AEST business hours. |
| Education content | structured | video + courses |
| tax and reporting | ||
| Australian tax statement | Yes | No |
| Distribution component breakdown | No | No |
| CGT calculator / report | Yes | No |
| Sharesight / Navexa integration | Yes | No |
| trading mechanics | ||
| Market orders | Yes | Yes |
| Limit orders | Yes | Yes |
| Stop loss orders | Yes | Yes |
| Conditional orders | Yes | Yes |
| Auto-invest / DCA | No | No |
| Auto-invest sophistication | none | none |
| DRP (dividend reinvestment) | Yes | No |
| After-hours / overnight trading | No | Yes |