Revolut, the London-based FinTech has launched a commission-free stock trading service across Europe, starting with a gradual rollout to a select number of its Metal card customers.

The move could radically alter the face of stock market trading, where many stockbrokers and banks have traditionally relied on making huge profits from commissions every time a clients buys or sells stocks, bonds and other financial instruments.

Once available, Revolut Metal card customers will be able to make up to 100 instant free trades in over 300 US listed stocks on the New York Stock Exchange and NASDAQ, supported by real-time price updates and market performance data.

This is a growing list of companies, and Revolut intends to add more stocks on a continuous basis.

In the coming weeks, Revolut said it will also roll this service out to their Standard and Premium customers.

Free trades

Standard customers will be limited to three free trades per month, while Premium customers will be limited to eight free trades per month.

Trades made outside of any monthly allowance will be charged at just £1 per trade, and an annual custody fee of only 0.01%.

There is no account minimum required to invest and Revolut is providing customers with the opportunity to buy fractional shares for as little as $1, opening up and demystifying the notoriously closed-off, pricey and complex stock market to an entirely new audience.

All currency transactions will be made as usual within Revolut’s multi-currency wallet, meaning anyone wishing to invest can transfer money from their home currency account into US Dollars using Revolut’s exchange rates and automatic conversion process.

UK and European stocks to follow

Revolut said it will be continually developing its investment service, with planned features including access to UK and European stocks, Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) and the ability to invest via a Stocks and Shares ISA.

The plan is to expand access on a global scale, with Revolut users outside of the European Economic Area (EEA) set to benefit in the future.

“This is another huge step in our mission to make financial services more inclusive, innovative and affordable”, said said Nik Storonsky, Founder & CEO of Revolut.

“Investing in the stock market has been closed off to ordinary people for far too long, which has led to real problems for people as they search for effective ways to make the most out of their savings.”

“We’ve made sure that investing through Revolut is low cost, easy to use and available to everyone, even if they only want to try with very small amounts.

“This is only the beginning for our commission-free trading offering, as we’ll be rolling out access to different markets and investment products in the near future,” added Storonsky.