As the trade continues to grow in popularity, the emergence of brokerage services has also developed. Therefore, traders worldwide look for the best brokerage services and trading platforms to base their operations on. Among the giants of the industry is M1 Finance.
M1 Finance is a trading platform that brings traders and investors together by offering them a unique combination of automated services for investing purposes.
Can You Use M1 Finance in the UK?
Unfortunately, M1 Finance is not available in the UK. When opening an account with the platform, you will have to check some boxes for it to go through.
You are over 18 years old, a US Citizen (or a permanent resident), and you have access to a US Mailing address.
Best M1 Finance Alternatives
There are many UK brokers to choose from. Here is our #1 rated broker:
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What is M1 Finance UK
M1 Finance is an excellent platform for both passive and active online traders and investors. If you are looking to build wealth over time, the platform is the ideal option.
Sadly, M1 Finance is yet to announce any plans to expand its trading services to the UK. At the moment, they are choosing to focus their efforts on the ready US market and try to make the most out of it.
With M1 Finance, traders enjoy a high level of customization, allowing them to develop portfolios that incorporate all their specifications and requirements.
However, it is essential to note that this platform does not offer advisory services.
At the moment, the company boasts of more than half a million clients who manage more than 2 billion dollars collectively. This makes them a top choice for anyone looking to invest and make money out of online trading.
The good thing about them is that they do not charge their clients commission or fees, even when depositing money in their M1 Finance accounts.
This comes as a disappointment to many UK investors and traders who would like to access the eternal features and benefits of the top drawer app.
Most of their services are offered through their app. Some of the accounts you can create include:
- Individual accounts
- Brokerage accounts
- Automated accounts
- IRAs
- Trust accounts
You can also benefit from the platform through its fractional shares, custodial accounts, digital banking services, and many others.
What Do They Offer
M1 Finance also offers margin loans to clients. They have a feature known as M1 borrow that allows you to enjoy loans at low interest rates. Basically, you will only be charged a 3.5% interest rate.
Contrary to other loan providers, you won’t need the $25,000 to access the loan. The amount is as low as $5,000, meaning that you can access one even when you don’t have huge balances on your account.
The good thing about their app is the fact that it is available for both Android and iOS. With it, you can acquire a debit card that is integrated directly into the app. Better still, you can benefit from their regular rewards and cashback services, especially those offered in qualified purchases.
Talk about professionalism! There are more than eighty professional portfolios on the platform.
M1 Finance is a hybrid investment platform that combines self-directed trading services with automated investing. The app utilizes pie-based models to let you choose the stocks, portfolios, and ETFs that you would like to invest your money in.
Also, you can select the percentage of your money that you would want to allocate every investment. An alternative to M1 Finance is Betterment.
The M1 Finance platform uses a proprietary trading infrastructure to automate the traders’ trading activities. This comes as great news to investors who would fancy sitting back and monitoring the progress of their investments without having to manage and set trading strategies now and then.
The investment app executes and manages all the trading transactions during the famous morning trade window, starting at around 9:30 a.m. EST. However, if you are their clients and you decide to upgrade, all to an M1 Plus account, you have the luxury of utilizing the afternoon trading window to your advantage. You will be able to trade on the app whenever you want.
One might wonder, how do you upgrade to an M1 Plus account?
There are additional upgrading fees; you will have to pay an additional $125 annually. However, the good thing about the upgrade is that you will have more perks. You can enjoy 1.5% loan reductions, banking advantages, custodial investment accounts, and smart transfers.
In addition to the automated trading processes, you can trade individual securities on the platform. This may even include parts of your portfolio. Other features and services that you get to enjoy include
- Auto invest savings
- Fractional shares
- Portfolio rebalancing
- Tax modifications and minimization.
My Personal Experience With M1 Finance
Last year, during a visit to my good friend in the United States, I had the opportunity to try out M1 Finance – a popular brokerage platform that, unfortunately, is not yet available in the United Kingdom. As an avid investor always on the lookout for user-friendly platforms and innovative investment tools, I was keen to see what all the fuss was about.
My friend, who has been using M1 Finance for quite some time, generously allowed me to access and explore his account. Upon logging in, the first thing that caught my attention was the sleek and modern interface. The platform was easy to navigate and seemed to have a perfect balance of simplicity and sophistication. The dashboard provided a clear overview of the portfolio, with various charts and graphs making it simple to track performance and keep an eye on the overall balance.
The platform offers a unique feature called “Pies,” which allows users to create customized portfolios by allocating a percentage of their investments to various assets. This feature enables investors to easily diversify their holdings, and the platform will automatically rebalance the portfolio as needed to maintain the desired asset allocation. I was thoroughly impressed by this intuitive approach to portfolio management.
M1 Finance also offers fractional shares, allowing investors to purchase a portion of a share rather than an entire share. This feature is excellent for those with limited funds, as it enables them to participate in the market and build a diversified portfolio without needing a large amount of capital.
One aspect that I found particularly attractive was the platform’s focus on long-term investing. M1 Finance encourages users to set up recurring investments, which can be a highly effective strategy for building wealth over time.
Assets and Market
Automated Investing and Investing Pies
The app draws many investors and traders to set up investing plans and helps them to monitor the accounts. Generally, working with M1 Finance is like letting your broker run your investment options for you. You can even get the opportunity to focus on other things and responsibilities.
You have to select what you invest in. Therefore, you will create a chart, which resembles a pie chart, but this time with the investment you pick. This includes sticks, ETFs, etc.
Smart Transfers
Smart transfers are the M1 option for you to automate your financial spree. You have the opportunity to set rules so that it can continue automatically. Let’s say you decide to set your smart transfers to keep your balance at a minimum.
There is an option within the M1 Finance app that allows you to acquire loans if the balance in your account drops too low. This means that you will still have the chance to invest even if you are short on money.
Moreover, you can also move your funds into different accounts. The point is, there are so many automation options that can take your financial culture to the next level.
These features give users a more accessible option, mapping them among the best service providers in the market.
Margin Loans
Imagine having an app that you can invest in and still access loans? M1 Finance offers clients loans at a meager interest rate.
Just like other margin loans, their loans do not have fixed repayment reschedules. As long as the records show that you have an outstanding balance, your interest expenses will accrue.
However, you should note that if the value of your account declines, you might have to replace the money you had borrowed. This will depend on the equity that your account has as well as the amount you had borrowed.
Tax Minimization
M1 Finance also offers options to sell positions in a tax-friendly way by using their simplified methods of harvesting tax losses. After withdrawing the money from your account, they can sell assets and later return you to the target allocations as close as they can.
Sales are prioritized in the following order.
- Losses to offset the capital gains
- ETFs and stocks that have capital gains that last longer
- ETFs and stocks that have capital gains that last for a short time
Through this, M1 Finance minimizes the taxes that you would have incurred with your investment activities.
Well, this might not be the same as tax-loss harvesting, but the potential it has is enough, such that you can still save a lot of money without worrying about regulating the taxes manually.
M1 Spend
There are M1 accounts that are entirely digitized, both the checking and debit options. Referred to as M1 Spend, the account allows you to use the card to bypass the fee associated with ATMs, earn extra interest and will enable you to invest your funds on the sideline.
This account is available and accessible to M1 Finance users, even those using the M1 Plus.
However, you will have to subscribe to the M1 Plus package to take advantage of the numerous benefits associated with the M1 Spend accounts. This includes the 1% cashback on the purchases that you make on the platform.
Deposits and Withdrawal
You can deposit funds into your M1 Finance account right after creating a portfolio and start investing right away. The first deposit will support concurrently with your targets and goals set for your portfolio when the next trade comes.
Additionally, since you deposit money on your account, you will notice that they will be equally distributed, depending on your targets.
However, once you deposit your first funds, the future trades will aim to restore the initial distribution of the funds; a concept is known a Dynamic Rebalancing.
The app is intelligent in that it will automatically try to rebalance the portfolio gradually as you continue depositing and withdrawing money from the portfolio. Therefore, if a security goes underweight concerning the target, more funds will be channeled towards this security the next time you deposit money on your account.
For withdrawals, there are different options to send your money from your M1 Finance to external financial institutions. However, you need to know that the platform won’t allow you to withdraw money from your account if you have unsettled securities sales.
If everything is clear and you want to withdraw your money from the account, here is a simple and basic process to follow and access your money.
- Open the platform and go to the ‘Funding’ tab. It is located at the top of the website
- Then a new page opens. Click on ‘Withdraw.’
- Enter the amount of money you want to withdraw and confirm. After this, the rest of the processes will be handled automatically by the program.
Customer Support
M1 Finance offers most of its customer services through emails and phone. Here, you will have the chance to communicate with their ready-to-assist agents. These agents have a history of serving customers to the fullest, guaranteeing them satisfaction.
Additionally, numerous detailed FAQs answer most of the questions that traders and customers might be having. This means that there is a high chance that the queries you have are included in these questions. Some of these FAQs have video walkthroughs for better explanation.
However, contrary to other platforms, M1 Finance is not an advisory service. This means that you won’t find financial consultants and advisors. It would be best if you did an extra research line on your own to extend your trading knowledge and see success in the industry.
Is My Money Safe With M1 Finance UK?
M1 Finance is a reliable and trustworthy trading platform. Thus, you should not be worried when you have invested in their services, no matter the amount.
The platform is under constant surveillance by top drawer financial institutions such as Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) and Securities and Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC).
They have also invested in strong encryption and cybersecurity services that ensure every user’s account is safe and secure. Until now, the platform is yet to receive any significant attacks. Therefore, you should feel safe whenever you have some money saved up on their platforms.
3 Reasons Why M1 Finance is a Good Broker
Reason 1
M1 Finance is a worthy and trustable company to invest in. It is like the platform was made for passive investors; the automation option is just unmatched. However, if you are an active trader, you won’t benefit much from M1 Finance.
It is a better option for investors looking for a streamlined, user-friendly platform with low fees and no commissions. Compared to other popular brokers like Robinhood or TD Ameritrade, M1 Finance offers a unique approach to investing that many users find appealing.
Reason 2
M1 Finance is a member of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC), which protects securities customers of its members up to $500,000 (including $250,000 for claims for cash). In addition, M1 Finance uses advanced security measures to protect its clients’ data and investments. So from a safety standpoint, M1 Finance is a reliable and secure option for investors.
Reason 3
In terms of features, M1 Finance offers a unique investing platform that allows users to create custom portfolios of stocks and ETFs, called “pies.” Investors can allocate their money across multiple pies, automatically rebalance their portfolios, and set up automatic investments. Plus, M1 Finance offers a variety of account types, including taxable accounts, traditional and Roth IRAs, and trusts.
Another group of people who would benefit from M1 Finance is dividend investors, index fund investors, and investors who base their trade on portfolio accounts. With all the safety measures and automation advantages, why not try it out?
Conclusion: M1 Finance UK
M1 Finance is a cutting-edge robotic brokerage platform that you can make the most out of. The hybrid traits are top-tier. Therefore, with the right strategy, determination, and good knowledge of the market, you can succeed with M1 Finance.
Unfortunately, you won’t be able to join the platform if you are in the UK.
