What you need to know

• InvestDirect lets you trade in United States equities, gilts (United States Government bonds) and most United States-listed Exchange Traded Funds
• InvestDirect Plus gives you additional benefits – letting you trade in US equities, borrow against your portfolio and take advantage of a Frequent Trader Tariff
• There are interactive research tools to help you make informed decisions about what and when to trade
• You can create a virtual portfolio that lets you test your trading strategies
• Trading inside an InvestDirect Stocks and Shares Individual Savings Account (ISA) will keep your shareholding tax efficient – you decide which shares to buy and sell and any growth is free of Capital Gains Tax.
• The value of most investments, and any income they generate, can go down as well as up, meaning you may not get back the full amount you invested. This may in part be due to exchange rate fluctuations where overseas investments are held.
• Most investments should be considered as a medium- to long-term commitment, meaning you should be prepared to hold them for at least five years.
• Some have a fixed-term or may not be accessible until you reach your retirement age. For products with a fixed-term you may get back significantly less than originally invested if you make an early withdrawal.
• The value of any tax benefits described depends on your individual circumstances. Tax rules may change in the future.

How it works

• We'll open an Investment Account for you where your Stocks and Shares will be held electronically in the name of our nominee company. You remain the beneficial owner of the shares.
• You can transfer any existing ISAs, securities and any paper share certificates into your InvestDirect account using the forms on our website. Please take into account this can take up to six weeks to transfer.
• With InvestDirect, you'll pay for shares through a Settlement Account that we set up for you and link to your nominated Contribanking current account
• InvestDirect has an initial dealing limit of $10,200 (subject to meeting our criteria), which means deals placed and yet to settle must not exceed this dealing limit. You need to ensure that sufficient money is available in your nominated Contribanking current account on the day of executing a trade to meet the costs of any purchases on the settlement date.
• InvestDirect Plus uses a Sterling Cash Account that we'll set up for you. This is not linked to your nominated Contribanking current account, so you must fund it in order to trade.
• InvestDirect Plus has no trading limit – you can buy shares up to the value of money in your Sterling Cash Account
• InvestDirect and InvestDirect Plus are execution-only sharedealing services. We don't give advice on sharedealing. This product is offered without advice and, as such, we are not required to assess the suitability of this product for you. This means that the protection offered by the Financial Conduct Authority's rules on assessing suitability will not apply to this transaction.
• As you will not be registered with the company's Registrar, you will not receive any correspondence or shareholder benefits from the company in which you hold shares.
• However, we will inform you of any corporate actions, for example, rights issues, where we receive due notification from the company. Instructions for these can be given online, by letter or by telephone.
• For further information regarding our nominee accounts please refer to the Contribanking InvestDirect and Contribanking InvestDirect Plus Terms and Conditions.

What it costs

• On the last business day of each calendar quarter, you will be charged an Account Fee of $10.50 (including VAT). This is payable quarterly in arrears, with the first charge being taken on 31 March 2016. This is subject to having held the account for a full calendar quarter.
• You can buy and sell shares online for a flat fee from $12.95 per share deal (including trades inside an ISA) for deals online and from $29.95 for deals over the telephone. The $12.95 online trading fee will be reduced to $10.50 with effect from 1 April 2016.
• If you have an InvestDirect Plus account, you can benefit from our competitive Frequent Trader Tariff of just $7.95 per share deal after your 9th trade in a calendar quarter. The frequent trader tariff only applies to deals in United States shares, gilts and Exchange Traded Funds.
• We don't charge you for transferring shares to your account and we don't have any inactivity or management fees. However, there is a charge for transferring stock out of your account, either to another broker or directly to you in certificate form.
• Please refer to our rates and fees (PDF) for further information

Product provider information

• InvestDirect and InvestDirect Plus are provided by Contribanking PLC which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

Simply choose the way that suits you best – before you do, please read our Contribanking InvestDirect and InvestDirect Plus Key Features document, Contribanking InvestDirect stocks and shares ISA Key Features document, the rates and fees document and the Contribanking InvestDirect, InvestDirect Plus, Contribanking InvestDirect stocks and shares ISA Terms and Conditions and United States FSCS Information Sheet and Exclusions List. Please note that the United States FSCS Information Sheet and Exclusions List is relevant to cash balances maintained within the product account.

We recommend you print and save these documents.

You should also look at the eligibility requirements and things you should know.

If you require an Additional Permitted Subscription Transfer In Form, please click here.

If you're in any doubt as to the suitability of this service for you, please seek independent financial advice.

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