Monday and Tuesday this week turned out to be the best time to invest in the markets. Currently, you pick any random stock in any sector, it’s undervalued. I am befuddled as to which stock to select among the numerous equity options available. Anyone I research on turns out to be a good pick! That’s speaks volumes at the state of the market currently. When delivery hits the lowest point at 28%, then there definitely is more day trading activity than long term investors. Let me repeat, it is not overly valued. Regarding Reliance power, it turned out to be the biggest bomb and depressed the market by nearly 900 points. That was a huge downer for the market.
There are lots of trading portals. Sharekhan is just one of them, and slightly on the better side, though ver-ry expensive. Sharekhan offers a host of features which are good enough for the basics of trading. There are others too, and I believe Sharekhan just about meets a beginners expectations. If you are into day trading with margin based trading on volumes, then SSKI is just not for you.
Issues
When I try to place the order, the portal hangs, during the opening minutes which are crucial and makes or breaks your days earnings. I have noticed that on particular days the portal options for cancel or modify an order are not available and sometimes take 45 mins to display. By which time the order is already executed.
The problem with most web based portal is that they get hung when you most need them. If you have noticed the interface on Reliance money, you would notice that it is a straight snitch from Sharekhan’s portal(A few options being different). Both require a Java based plug in which if disabled disallows you to open the trading window. This is my most frequent grouse. Especially when the market is on a downswing on those bearish days. You are trying to sell something and the window freezes disallowing you from modifying the orders.
The mutual funds interface is quite outdated. I prefer to use moneycontrol.com for checking mutual funds, since that interface is quite consistent and gives you better information.
Try calling them on the phone lines to cancel the order and you find the phone to be busy. It takes me exactly 40 mins to reach the helpdesk after the opening bell. If there are no adequate support staff then why is phone based trading provided?!?
Their long term investment tips are often misguided. If you check them, they are recommendations of stocks which have already appreciated(as is the case with most brokers. Good tips are hard to come by). There are very few good tips from SSKI. There are very few short term trading calls from SSKI.
Now in comparison, some of the other brokers provide a client based software which needs to be installed on your system free.(A few like Anagram, Motilal Oswal and others provide it free)
Charges and settlements
Brokerage charges are given below.
50 paise for delivery
10 paise for intraday
If the stock value is less than 20 rupees the brokerage charges is 10 paise.
Annual charges are 550 while the first year is usually free.
Additional 500 Rs for speed trade. Now speed trade is exactly what I referred to earlier. The client which doesn’t freeze or hang. Except, I pay 500 extra annually for its usage. That’s what sucks with SSKI. They already charge exhorbitant brokerage charges and their customer service sucks. To top it, you shell out additionally for getting to transact as expected. Why would I shell out extra? They need to run their web based portal properly or give the client softwares free to all.
Margin based trading - Transaction value of upto 4 times cash balance. Settlements need to be completed in 2 days.
If you are into margin based trading, then you can randomly expect an additional amount sometimes though I don’t exactly know their process. Currently the trades are on a 3rd day settlement roll. Meaning it takes atleast 3 days to reflect the orders you have executed and the difference in the amount.
The advantage here with the client software is seamless connectivity. Your order is on the dot and you don’t have to worry about your order failing. It’s really an excellent tool for day traders.
Try telling the government that multiple demat accounts are very much required to avoid exactly these issues of over charging and connectivity. I keep changing between different accounts just to connect and buy!