Share Broker

An individual cannot go directly to stock exchanges and trade in different securities. They have to approach a registered member of the exchange known as share broker. The investor has to open a trading and Demat account with it. A stockbroker is a company that acts as an intermediary and gives investors access to stock exchanges.

Share brokers can be categorized into 2 types:

• Full-service Broker: They are also known as full-service brokers. These brokerage firms provide a complete range of trading services to its clients. Besides trading services, traditional brokers also offer research advisory, portfolio management and investment services in other instruments like Bonds, IPO and Mutual Funds. They also provide a relationship manager to help them in trading. The brokerage charges of traditional or full-service brokers are higher when compared to discount brokers.
• Discount Broker: Discount brokers provide limited trading services to the investors. These companies operate online and offer trading services at a low brokerage. Generally, they charge a flat fee per trade irrespective of the value of the trade.