J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing Review

Useability

J.P. Morgan is a well-known broker and leader in the financial services industry. All your accounts can be integrated into the J.P. Morgan website and mobile apps. Self-Directed Investing customers have the ability to view all of their Chase accounts via the mobile app. Both the mobile platform and website are easy to use, regardless of whether you're an investor new or experienced. Customers who are self-directed investors have access to many tools and resources via the website and on mobile platforms.

These platforms include:

• The www.Chase.com Website

• Chase Mobile App

Customers have the ability to customize the Self-Directed Investment platform layout on the website as well as in the mobile application. Customers can view their Self-Directed Investment account information on multiple platforms or devices at once, provided they log through each platform. Customers can trade with the same order types, asset classes, view charts, and access market research reports in the self-directed investing app as well.

In less than five minutes, current Chase customers can open a Self-Directed Investment account via the mobile app. Some of the information is pre-filled using data from an existing account. It takes approximately one business day for the application to be processed and activated.

Trade Experience

Self-Directed Investing customers can trade the same way on the mobile app and the website. You can customize the layouts on both the website and mobile app. Investors can access real-time quotes streams but there is a delay of 15 minutes. The customizable screener tools allow you to screen stocks, mutual funds and ETFs. These screens can be built on technical indicators. They can also be saved and converted into watchlists.

Investors with at least $2,500 can use the Portfolio Builder tool to generate ideas and decide how to allocate their portfolio. Portfolio Builder allows you to trade stocks and ETFs, following the recommendations of the tool. The charting tool is limited in features and lacks a drawing tool.

Mobile Trade Experience

J.P. Morgan's Self-Directed Investing customers use the website platform. They also have the option to access the mobile app. J.P. Morgan's mobile apps are similar to the website platform for mobile investing. Through the mobile app, you can access all the same resources, tools, account types, order type options, and asset classes.

The advantages of the J.P. Morgan's mobile application are:

• Charting tools.

• Streaming of live quotes.

• Screeners for stocks and mutual funds.

• Customization of screensers and convertion of screens into watchlists.

• Access to market information for their investments, J.P. Morgan Research and market analysis.

• Access of Portfolio Builder and Portfolio Reports.

This application has several drawbacks:

• No drawing tools;

• 15 minute delay of streamed live quotes.

Products

Customers who are self-directed investors have access to a variety of investments including:

• Stocks

• ETFs are exchange-traded funds

• Mutual funds (Over 3000 mutual funds are currently available. JP Morgan offers only front-end load mutual funds.

• There are many options

• Fixed income (J.P. Morgan offers secondary and new issued corporate bonds, municipal bonds and bonds of government agencies, as well as brokered certificates or deposit (CDs) They also offer U.S. Treasury bills, bonds, and notes.

• Penny stocks

Types of Order

J.P. Morgan offers four order types on the Self-Directed Investing platform. They are stop limit, stop limit market, limit and stop order. Both the website and the mobile app offer the same order types. J.P. Morgan does not offer advanced order types like conditional orders such as one-cancels and-other (OCO). Investors can use conditional orders to maximize their profits and reduce their losses in the event that a stock's value falls. Active traders and investors with more experience are more likely to use advanced order types for position management. This makes them less likely to choose J.P. Morgan Self Directed Investing.

Trade Technology

J.P. Morgan employs a variety of processes to execute electronic order executions. These processes include smart order routing technology (SOR), algorithmic trading, and different trading systems. SOR, for example, is used to break down orders into smaller ones and route them to single dealers or securities exchanges. This process uses a particular routing logic. J.P. Morgan didn't provide execution statistics.

To use J.P. Morgan's trading platform, customers must agree to electronic trading agreements. Customers agree to comply with all applicable rules, regulations, policies and laws.

Prices

J.P. Morgan makes it very clear to customers what the costs of the Self-Directed Investing Account entails.

• There are no base commissions on U.S.-listed stocks, ETFs and mutual funds.

• $25 per trade transaction for broker assisted trades.

• ETF and stock sales subject to transaction fees of $0.01- $0.03 per $1,000 principal.

• Broker-assisted mutual funds trades: $20 per transaction

• Options cost $0.65 per contract. A strategy that uses equity options has a maximum of 4 legs.

• 25 per trade plus $0.65 for broker-assisted trading.

• There is no charge to exercise or assign options.

• Option sales attract a regulatory transaction fee between $0.01 and $0.03 per $1,000 principal.

• There is no base commission on U.S. Treasury notes, bonds, and bills, including auctions and secondary.

• There is no base commission on new corporate bonds, bonds issued by government agencies, bonds for municipalities, or brokered CDs.

• $10 commission plus $1 for each bond for secondary market corporate bonds and government agency bonds, municipal bonds and broker CDs ($250 maximum per 10 bonds).

• $75 to transfer or close a brokerage account, or to close a retirement brokerage accounts.

• There is a $25 wire transfer fee, but this does not apply for internal wire transfers.

• There are no maintenance fees or inactivity charges.

• There are no fees for withdrawals or deposits.

How this broker makes money for you and from you

J.P. Morgan informs customers that investing involves a range of expenses and costs. J.P. Morgan, like many other competitors, offers commission-free investment options. The company must also have other options to make income through the provision of products and services.

• Interest on uninvested cash:J.P. Uninvested cash can earn Morgan investors 0.01% A money market fund sweep can offer higher rates of interest.

• Price Improvement:J.P. Morgan states that they strive to ensure customers get the best execution of their orders in order to fulfill their guaranteed price orders. Morgan also stated that they will provide transparency regarding their order execution process. This may include hedging to reduce market risk. This can sometimes impact the order execution price. J.P. Morgan takes care to identify the most profitable markets for investment and executes orders in those markets at a fair price, based on current market conditions. J.P. Morgan does not publish execution statistics in an easily-digestible format.

• Payment for Order Flow (PFOF),J.P. Morgan discloses that it could make money by receiving orders flow payments such as credits or rebates, lower fees, or discounts. These payments are disclosed by J.P. Morgan in their quarterly Rule 606 Reports. J.P. Morgan didn't receive any order flow payment in the most recent filing.

Account and Research Amenities

J.P. Morgan offers the most popular offerings on the Self-Directed Investing platform. The number of research tools they offer is limited compared to the extensive offerings offered by other brokers.

Stock Screener

J.P. Morgan's Self-Directed Investing platform offers a stock screener customers can access via the mobile app or the website. Customers can screen stocks using technical indicators and Morningstar ratings. They can also save screens to be used in the future and convert screens into watchlists.

ETF and Mutual Fund Screener

A screener for mutual funds and ETFs is available via the Self-Directed Investing platform. It can be accessed on both the website and mobile app. Customers can screen mutual fund and ETFs using technical indicators and Morningstar ratings. They can also save screens and convert them into watchlists.

Option Screener

The Self-Directed Investing platform does not allow for screen options.

Fixed Income Screener

Customers of Self-Directed Investing platforms are not able to screen for fixed income securities.

Calculators and Tools

J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing customers have access, but not as many tools as those on other platforms. The Portfolio Builder, portfolio reports, real-time quote streams, and portfolio reports are some of the available tools.

Charting

J.P. Morgan's Self Directed Investing platform offers a limited number of charting tools. These are both available in the web app and on the web platform. The charting tool does not include a drawing function. Customers can access technical indicators to personalize charts.

Trade Idea Generators

The Portfolio Builder tool is available to self-directed investors. The tool allows them to generate ideas for different investments and to decide how they want to organize their portfolio.

News

Customers who use mobile self-directed investing have access to market information for investments in their watchlists. Subscribe to The Know Newsletter biweekly to get news on investing trends, strategies recommendations and market analysis. Customers can also subscribe to The Know: In Focus for informative and educational videos that are emailed biweekly about various financial topics.

Research by a Third Party

Self-Directed Investing customers have access to Morningstar ratings, which are included in the screeners. Customers still have access the company's J.P. Morgan Markets and DataQuery platforms. J.P. Morgan Research provides research on more than 1,200 companies.

Cash Management

J.P. Morgan deposits cash to customers who are Self-Directed Investing customers with cash balances. Customers have the option to have funds automatically swept into either a bank deposit sweep at 0.01%, or a money-market fund sweep account with yields of up to 2.0%.

Fractional Dividend Reinvestment Plan - DRIP

J.P. Morgan gives customers the opportunity to invest fractionally in shares, as well as dividend reinvestments.

SRI/ESG Research Amenities

Customers can search for stocks and mutual funds in the Self-Directed Investing Platform's section called Find Investments. You can filter to search only for socially responsible investment (SRI), in the mutual fund and ETFs search sections. Customers can view individual quotes and track investment performance. They can also view Morningstar ratings.

Portfolio Analysis

Portfolio Builder is a useful tool that allows you to create diversified portfolios. To use the Portfolio Builder tool, customers must have at least $2,500 in cash. Customers have access to a sector-allocation monitor portfolio tracking feature. However, the platform does not offer trading journals or backtesting. Customers can also access real-time quote streams, although there is a delay of 15 minutes.

Education

J.P. Morgan provides free educational resources for Self-Directed Investing customers. Subscribe to The Know: in Focus for biweekly emails with articles and videos on a variety of topics. The topics include market outlook, investing basics a-z, retirement information, and other topics. You can also find The Know on the website, which has videos and articles on many topics, including market trends, research, and other relevant topics.

Customer Service

Customers can contact customer service via the mobile app and the website in a number of ways. There is a whole page on the website dedicated to customer support and where Chase customers can get help.

• You can reach customer service by phone or in a branch near you during normal business hours.

• There is no live chat.

• Customers can access a Chase Digital Assistant chat function 24/7 via the mobile app.

• Customers can reach Chase customer service via Chase's social media channels.

• The website and the mobile app both have sections with frequently asked questions (FAQs), which can be found on different pages.

• Customers have the option to speak to a broker or licensed advisor during business hours.

Security and reliability

J.P. Morgan is committed to protecting their customers' accounts and information. To protect information they use a variety processes and procedures, including:

• Multiple authentication steps are required to log in from a device not recognized or for the first time.

• Biometric login features like voice ID, touch ID and face ID are available.

• J.P. Morgan is a member the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC). The cash sweep is covered by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

• J.P. Morgan Chase has been notified of security breaches involving the Chase Mobile app. This app is also used to access J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing. J.P. Morgan Securities didn't report any outages or breaches.

Transparency

J.P. Morgan offers detailed information on pricing and fees for their Self-Directed Investing platform. This information is available both on the website and in the mobile application. Additional information regarding terms, costs and fees, as well as the risks involved in investing can be found in the footnotes, which are usually located at the bottom of company web pages. J.P Morgan offers details about how they execute orders and the payments they receive according regulatory requirements. However, these are not as easily understood as other brokers.

Account types available

J.P. Morgan only offers three Self-Directed Investment Accounts

• Individual taxable account

• Traditional Individual Retirement Account (IRA)

• Roth IRA

Final Verdict

J.P. Morgan is an international financial institution with over 200 years of history. Even though the offerings are simple, the J.P. Morgan brand has helped them succeed. J.P. Morgan Self Directed Investing has a simple approach. There aren't many tools to analyze or research that investors can use. The trade interface is simple and there are only a few account types and assets. J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing is unable to post a sign stating that no active traders are allowed. This is in keeping with the J.P. Morgan Chase experience. It is geared towards professional and proven management.

J.P. Morgan's Self Directed Investing platform is more like Vanguard and T. Rowe Price in that the design and selections of tools are meant to encourage buy-and-hold investing and not active trading. J.P. Morgan's Self Directed Investing platform is competitive. It has transparent pricing and all the tools you need to find and hold good assets. It all depends on your investment style and how heavy the J.P. Morgan brand is.