To further encourage the public to invest in the capital market, financial service provider GCash and its broker partner, AB Capital Securities Inc. (ABSCI), have removed the P20 broker commission fee in GStocks PH. 

GCash said on Friday that the move responds to the Securities and Exchange Commission’s decision in April to remove the minimum commission that stockbrokers may charge their customers for transactions below P8,000. 

As such, GStocks PH now offers a 0.25 percent flat commission fee on all buy and sell transactions, which makes it one of the first trading platforms to implement lower fees.

“With this move, investing in the stock market has been more accessible and affordable than ever before. 

Through GStocks PH, GCash aims to attract more retail investors, boost trading activity, and enhance user experience by offering more cost-efficient transactions on the platform,” GCash vice president and group head for New Businesses and Wealth Management Winsley Bangit said. 

Bangit noted that promoting stock market investments can have a positive impact on the economy.

Index improving

The Philippine Stock Exchange Index (PSEi) has been trading around the 6,600 level, rebounding from its 6,400 low in April this year. 

ABCSCI’s report indicates a positive market outlook for the latter half of 2024, primarily attributed to anticipated interest rate reductions. This favorable scenario presents an opportune moment for investors to expand their stock portfolios.

GCash users can effortlessly venture into the realm of local stock investment with GStocks PH. 

Using only their GCash app, users can swiftly register, add funds swiftly and free of charge, and invest seamlessly in more than 280 local companies listed on the PSE, all within minutes.

Early this week, the Philippine Stock Exchange Inc. (PSE) reported a rise in the number of Filipinos engaging in capital market investments primarily due to the GStocks PH.

Based on the PSE’s annual Stock Market Investor Profile report, there were a total of 1,906,019 stock market accounts as of end-2023, higher by 11.3 percent or 193,285 accounts from 1,712,734 accounts in 2022.

The PSE reported that the surge in online accounts was primarily driven by the GStocksPH platform, leading to a significant increase in new accounts. 

As a result, online accounts took up 80 percent of all stock market accounts. By the end of 2023, there were 1,525,768 online accounts, representing a 21.2 percent or 266,861 account increase compared to the previous year.