JPMorgan Chase will soon launch a free investing app for stock traders called You Invest. Investors will be able to conduct up to 100 free trades within the first year. This app has been in development over the last three years. And this concept has been popularized with other stock trading apps like Robinhood — which provides commission-free trades.
JPMorgan Chase currently has 47 million customers who use online banking via the website or the mobile app. And these customers will have access to the You Invest app soon.
For the first year, JPMorgan Chase customers who download the You Invest app will have 100 free stock trades or exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
What happens after the first year? The 100 free trades will essentially be refreshed for the year if customers maintain a certain minimum balance. JPMorgan Chase customers who have a Premier-level bank account with a minimum of $15,000 will continue to get 100 free trades every year. The You Invest app will provide resources on how to invest and it will provide resources to help decide which stocks to buy or sell.
You Invest CEO Jed Laskowitz said that the app accounts belonged to users who were 15 years younger than the average Chase-advised investor during the initial pilot phase with thousands of current customers, according to USA Today. And about 90% of those who participated in the pilot period had not invested with Chase yet and 40% opened up accounts through the mobile app.
“We know that the reality of starting investing actually cuts across age and that there are some who haven’t started to invest, they have been overwhelmed by it … or they don’t feel they could afford it,” said JPMorgan Chase’s head of digital wealth management Kelli Keough via USA Today. “You Invest is meant to help break down those barriers so that more people can start to invest, regardless of age.”
Some of the JPMorgan’s rivals like Fidelity Investments and Charles Schwab have lowered their stock trading fees to $4.95 per online stock trades and ETFs. And trades in some of their own index funds are free of charge. Shortly after JPMorgan announced the new app, the stock prices of some of E-Trade, Charles Schwab, TD Ameritrade dipped.
