Investment accounts for limited companies

[Bumbling Amateur]

Can anyone recommend a company that offers accounts to limited companies for investing in funds and shares?

My company has some money sitting around which I'd like to gamble on the stock market but there doesn't seem many options out there. I already use Hargreaves Lansdown for investing my personal money and whilst they are good, they are an expensive platform plus I don't want to put all my eggs in one basket.

ii offer company accounts but they charge £30 per month for the same product they sell to individuals for £9.99 a month which grates a little.

 

[macScot]

Gamble? I hope not. Just be careful.

HL no longer do company accounts when I asked them towards end of last year.

We, therefore, went with ii, yes the monthy cost is something that feels high, but we made the assumption the rewards of investing will still be much greater than leaving it in the company bank account.

Etoro seemed to be ok with company accounts, but their requirements of providing detailed financial reports, etc. were a turn-off, so we went with ii as a result.

 

[Bumbling Amateur]

Gamble? I hope not. Just be careful.

HL no longer do company accounts when I asked them towards end of last year.

We, therefore, went with ii, yes the monthy cost is something that feels high, but we made the assumption the rewards of investing will still be much greater than leaving it in the company bank account.

Etoro seemed to be ok with company accounts, but their requirements of providing detailed financial reports, etc. were a turn-off, so we went with ii as a result.

Thank you.

Do you know if ii allow shorting of shares?

 

[macScot]

No, I do not know, it is not something we are interested in, we just invested in large companies mainly dividend-paying companies in the UK, US, and European markets. We are investing for the long term in the shares we have selected and are not interested in short-term trading or shorting or gambling company money in any other way.

 

[Porky]

I didn't know that about HL but they were always a pain as you had to have the Limited company account linked to your Personal account and i didn't like that - I like to keep my Limited coy totally detached from my personal stuff.

The other one that looks good is A J Bell but i have had details sent to me and its also £30 a month service change. So £360 a year for an account with them.

I was hearing good stuff about Invest Engine, its a disrupter in the space and it doesn't charge service fees and its commissions are rock bottom BUT it just puts me off because its newish to market. Don't get me wrong, its covered under the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) but that's only £75,000

Funders Under Control:-
- A J Bell £75.5 billion
- II - $11.6 billion
- Invest Engine - Not declared but likely to be in low millions IMO.

Invest Engine

InvestEngine

More power to your Money

investengine.com

A J Bell

AJ Bell | Award-Winning Investment Platform

AJ Bell is a low-cost, award-winning investment platform for the DIY investor. Learn more about our SIPP, Stocks and shares ISA, Junior ISA and Dealing account.

www.ajbell.co.uk

I think you can short using CFDs on IG Index and they have Limited Company accounts not sure of charges though:-

Corporate Accounts

We offer a complete trading solution for institutional and retail corporate clients, built around powerful technology, a huge range of markets and dedicated support.

www.ig.com

They do point out however that 76% of account users lose money on CFDs - I guess the biggest issue you have is the spread.

I play a long game myself, should the market tank this year i will be looking to add but appreciate you can make good money on the way down.

Good Luck

 

[iconic]

Would it be possible to use a personal investment account for business use..? If you had a written agreement in place between you and the company, stating that it was the companies money being held in the account?

Thoughts? ?

 

[Scalloway]

You are in danger of having HMRC consider it being a diretor's loan, which has tax consequences.

 

[iconic]

You are in danger of having HMRC consider it being a diretor's loan, which has tax consequences.

But if the agreement is written properly it might work?

Just a thought I guess.

 

[nelioneil]

Would it be possible to use a personal investment account for business use..? If you had a written agreement in place between you and the company, stating that it was the companies money being held in the account?

Thoughts? ?

I would say a bigger issue is your bank account almost certainly will have rules against being used for busines purposes, and your provider may decide to close it.

 

[LiveNetworks Ltd]

I'd be cautious about using company money in this way.
If anything went wrong, you could find yourself personally liable.
For instance, do the Memo and Articles permit you to use company funds in this way?
If the company lost money and went into liquidation it's highly likely the creditors would push for the limited liability to be stripped through you acting ultra vires.

 

[Porky]

Also, IF that personal Investment account was a Stocks and Shares Dealing account, any shares you buy through that account would be issued to YOU personally. Any dividends paid to YOU personally.

As such not only would you likely be in breach of both the banks and the stock brokers account rules on using a personal account for business use but i can practically guarantee that the HMRC would view it as personal transactions. As @Scalloway commented treat as a Directors loan.

If you want the company to invest in listed third party shares, as i see it, your choice is to either pony up the £360 a year and go with a blue chip established firm or a free start up disrupter as detailed.

Oh and don't forget, if you are a company buying shares you will need an LEI number and that's another £75 a year:-

Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation:-

Home – GLEIF

www.gleif.org

LEI Registration Agent (NB there are others):-

British LEI: LEI number | Official Registration Agent

Official Registration Agent in the UK. Apply for LEI in 2 minutes! Integrated with Companies House. Free company data updates.

britishlei.co.uk

Good luck