Scalable Broker FAQ
Find answers to the most frequently
asked questions about the Scalable Broker.
Account opening
Our service is aimed at persons resident in Germany, Austria, Italy, Spain, metropolitan France and the Netherlands. In addition, the following requirements must be met:
- You are over 18 years of age.
- You are not subject to US taxation (not a “US person” under US tax law).
- You have a current account that is kept at a credit institution based in the SEPA area.
- You use our service as an offer from a foreign provider.
Please also note that the custodian bank only pays taxes for customers who are taxable in Germany. If you are subject to tax abroad, you must carry out the correct taxation of all securities transactions yourself. We provide you a tax reporting for this purpose.
You will select an amount for your initial deposit during the registration process. This amount must be at least 1 euro. Your available balance can be paid out in full or in part at any time. A high deposit is recommended in order to be able to start trading stocks, ETFs and funds immediately.
The registration is completed online and only takes a few minutes. Registration via iOS or Android mobile app is also possible. You complete the identification via POSTIDENT (Please note: This step is not necessary for existing customers of our wealth management product with custody account management at Baader Bank).
The account opening by the custodian bank usually takes up to three working days. As soon as your custody account has been opened and the initial deposit has been made, you can start trading.
The Money Laundering Act (MLA) requires us to identify our customers. This identification is also in your interest, as it ensures a higher level of security in the customer relationship.
An MLA-compliant identification is carried out conveniently via our partner Fourthline.
Identification is done through our partner Fourthline. Fourthline is a digital identification provider based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. It is part of Safened-Fourthline BV, which is regulated as a payment institution by the Dutch Central Bank and the Financial Conduct Authority. You can read more about Fourthline here.
Identification is also possible with a foreign passport. Please find a list of supporting documents & countries here.
You can start the identification process conveniently in our app or online by logging in to your Scalable Capital account after completing the registration.
Once you have successfully completed the identification, you do not need to do anything else. The identification data is transmitted to Scalable Capital, and the opening of both the clearing account and the custody account is initiated. It can take up to three working days to open the accounts. You will be informed automatically as soon as the account opening is completed.
If any questions arise from the transmitted identification data, we will contact you proactively.
Deposits and monthly savings plans are collected from your current account via SEPA direct debit. In addition, all withdrawals are transferred there by your Scalable Broker.
The current account must be in your name and must be held at a bank in the SEPA area. It must also be an account for payment transactions. For example, savings and overnight money accounts are not permitted. If your current account is a joint account, you must be registered as the beneficial owner.
There is no demo account. However, with our FREE Broker all important functions are already available to you. In this plan, there are no monthly fees or minimum investment period.
The Scalable Broker is only offered as a single account.
The minimum age for using Scalable Broker is 18 years.
The Scalable Broker is only offered to private individuals.
Trading via Scalable Broker is only possible in Euros.
In the Scalable Broker, you can manage one portfolio in your name. However, with our portfolio groups feature, you have the ability of grouping your brokerage account according to your own preferences.
If you use the FREE Broker, one portfolio group can be created. In PRIME and PRIME+ Broker, up to 50 personalised groups are available to you.
Please note that in portfolio groups only the group performance since buy can be displayed.
At present, we do not have a referral program in Italy. It is something we are considering and will reach out to clients in due course if it is released.
An advanced electronic signature (AES) is a type of electronic signature that meets the requirements set forth under EU Regulation No 910/2014 (eIDAS-regulation). Essentially, AES uniquely links to the signer, enables identification of the signer, and allows the signer to retain control. It also links to the signed data in a way that any subsequent change to this data can be detected.
Securities account management
If you use our PRIME+ Broker (formerly PRIME flex), you receive 2.3% interest p.a.* on your uninvested cash of up to 100,000 euros on your clearing account since 1 February. No interest will be paid on cash above this amount.
There is no minimum holding period for the cash on your clearing account. Interest is calculated on a daily basis and paid out quarterly in arrears to your clearing account. You will find the payout, as soon as it has been made, in the transaction overview in your Scalable client area. The interest rate applies until further notice.
Deposits and withdrawals to your clearing account are possible at any time. Please note the regular restrictions regarding the cash available for withdrawals in the client documents section III.
The offer is open-ended and valid throughout Europe for new and existing PRIME+ clients. If you are currently using the FREE or PRIME broker and would also like to benefit from the interest, you can easily upgrade your pricing model at any time in your client area under "Products" by clicking on "Change plan".
Please note: Do not click on "Cancel Broker" if you wish to change your broker model. By doing so, you will terminate your entire securities account; this process cannot be reversed.
If you switch from PRIME Broker to PRIME+, the PRIME annual fee already paid will be refunded to you on a pro rata basis and the recurring fee for PRIME+ will be deducted monthly from your reference account.
You can find more detailed information about the offer here.
*Starting 01/02/2023 for PRIME+. Cash account at Baader Bank AG. Variable rate up to €100,000. Learn more scalable.capital/interest-conditions
You can switch between the different price models (FREE Broker, PRIME Broker and PRIME+ Broker) at any time. To do so, go to the "Profile" tab in your customer area. Under "Products" you will find the option to change your broker plan at any time by clicking on "Change plan". Please note that the change will take effect immediately.
Please note: Do not click on "Cancel Broker", as this will cancel your entire securities account; this process cannot be reversed.
If you change from PRIME Broker to PRIME+, the annual fee already paid will be refunded to you on a pro rata basis.
There are no minimum investment periods or minimum terms of contracts. Individual securities can be bought and sold at any time. Our service can also be cancelled at any time free of charge. It is also possible to switch between the price models offered (FREE Broker, PRIME Broker and PRIME+ Broker) at any time free of charge.
Deposit
Deposits to your clearing account can be made in several ways.
The fastest way is real-time payment via Instant. Payments via Instant are available within a few seconds for the purchase of securities. The deposit amount is collected by SEPA direct debit from your reference account. For more information, please refer to the customer documents. Fees apply for payment via Instant.
Alternatively, you can transfer the desired amount or deposit by SEPA direct debit. The IBAN for the transfer to your clearing account can be found in your personal customer area under "Payments" and "Transfer". Please enter your name as the recipient. Transfers have to be made from your deposited reference account. Deposits that cannot be assigned clearly to you (e.g. PayPal, Transferwise) are not permitted.
Withdrawal
You can request a withdrawal via the menu item "Payments" in your customer area. Please note that deposits made by SEPA direct debit or Instant may not be paid out or used for the purchase of derivatives until after eight weeks. This is because direct debits can be revoked within the first eight weeks. After these eight weeks, cash balances from direct debits can be paid out at any time.
Please also note that your clearing account is generally not a payment transaction account and is used exclusively for the settlement of securities transactions.
The availability or maximum amount of Instant deposit depends on individual factors. You can increase the likelihood of Instant availability by, for example, instructing deposits via regular SEPA direct debit or by executing savings plans.
You made your deposit to the Scalable fee account (IBAN DE64700331000025820085) by mistake? We usually automatically reject deposits to the fee account. Your deposit will be immediately transferred back to the reference account you used.
You can find details on your individually available cash balance in your personal customer area.
Sale proceeds can be used immediately to purchase securities, but are generally not available for payment until two banking days later. This is because the actual exchange of securities for payment (known as settlement) does not take place until two days after the transaction has been concluded on the stock exchange.
The cash balance available for withdrawal may be reduced for a few bank working days after deposits by SEPA direct debit in order to avoid an overdraft of the settlement account due to possible returned direct debits.
In addition, it may not be possible to pay out the full cash balance within the first eight weeks after deposits by SEPA direct debit or Instant.
The broker account is managed on a credit basis and cannot be overdrawn in the course of normal daily business. If there are not enough funds available on the broker account for a prepared order and no corresponding deposit has been instructed via instant, the order cannot be placed.
Should the broker account still show a negative balance, the custodian bank will charge interest for this. Please find the current overdraft interest rate in the special conditions to the price and service list of Baader Bank.
All transactions can be viewed at any time in our app or online by logging in to your Scalable Capital account. In addition, the custodian bank will provide you with a monthly account statement in your mailbox. There you will see a summary of all transactions made.
In addition to the real-time valuation of your portfolio, we also show you the absolute return in Euros. A percentage return on a portfolio basis is in many cases misleading, as it depends heavily on the timing of trading activities and their size.
It is possible to calculate the percentage return in relation to the total deposits made (minus withdrawals); however, this figure offers limited information as this example illustrates:
Assume you invest 10,000 Euros once through Scalable Broker. After one year your investments have generated an absolute return of 700 Euros. This would now result in a relative return of 7.0% and would be a meaningful indication. However, if you invested another 10,000 Euros on the same day, your percentage return would be halved - without changing the value of your investments (700 / 20,000 = 3.5%).
The time-weighted yield which we also use in wealth management can offer little help here. This is adjusted for incoming and outgoing payments thus allowing a direct comparison with a benchmark or another portfolio.
In wealth management, it is important to show the performance of the wealth manager transparently and independently of the client's investment dates. When evaluating one's own investment decisions, on the other hand, timing in particular plays a very decisive role in investment success. Therefore, the time-weighted return is not suitable in the context of Scalable Broker.
To add a security to your watchlist, click on the desired security. Then, click on "Add to watchlist" (appears as a star in the app) in the upper right corner of the overview page of the security. The security will now appear in the watchlist on your home page. Securities for which you have already instructed orders or set up a savings plan are automatically added to your portfolio list.
To remove a security from your watchlist, click on the desired security. Then, click on "Remove from watchlist" (appears as a star in the app) in the upper right corner of the overview page of the security. When you buy a security from your watchlist, or set up a savings plan, it is automatically transferred from the watchlist to the portfolio list.
Currently all entries are sorted alphabetically.
It is possible to move to a country that is a member of the European Union at any time.
In the event of a relocation to a country which is not a member state of the European Union, the business relationship cannot be continued for business policy reasons.
You can cancel or change your broker online or via the Scalable Capital app under "Profile", "Products". Cancellation is free of charge and possible at any time.
After your termination, you may continue to log into your personal area until 1st August of the following year and retrieve documents from your mailbox until the applicable retention periods expire before access is deactivated. However, if necessary, access to your personal area can also be deactivated ahead of time. To do so, please send us an e-mail.
Trading
If you have any questions about our service, please contact us by email, chat, or telephone. However, we do not provide financial or investment advice.
Investing in the capital market comes with risks. We therefore advise our clients to keep an immediately available emergency reserve for unforeseen events which should cover all of your current expenses and obligations for at least six months.
In principle, all ETFs, shares and funds that are traded on the [gettex] stock exchange (https://www.gettex.de/en/) are available to you.
Additionally, you can trade more than 375,000 derivatives by Goldman Sachs, HSBC and HypoVereinsbank onemarkets. You can easily find out whether a security can be traded by using the search function of the broker screen in our app or online. Simply enter the name, the security identification number (WKN), or ISIN.
You can also buy registered shares via Scalable Broker. The custodian Baader Bank will take care of the registration for you.
You will not incur any costs for the registration performed by Baader Bank.
You can trade more than 375,000 derivatives in Scalable Broker. You can choose between derivatives by Goldman Sachs, HSBC or HypoVereinsbank onemarkets. To be able to trade derivatives, you have to successfully conduct the suitability test. This test is designed to assess your knowledge and experience with regards to derivatives. This is required since trading in derivatives can result in high and quick losses.You can check the availability of a specific derivative with our Derivatives Search.
In the Scalable Capital Broker, you have various financial products at your disposal with which you can invest in the gold market. For example, you can invest in ETCs that invest in physical gold.
In the Scalable Broker, you can also trade fixed-income bonds as well. We will gradually expand our bond offering. The currently available products can be found here at any time.
New initial public offerings (IPOs) can currently not be subscribed to via the Scalable Broker.
There is no minimum order value for trading in the Scalable Broker.
However, for all trades below 250 euros, 0.99 euros per trade are charged on gettex. This applies to all price models of our broker. Trades of PRIME ETFs from 250 euros are included in the trading flat rate in PRIME Broker and PRIME+ Broker. Sales of PRIME ETFs are subject to a fee of 0.99 euros in the FREE Broker.
If you're having trouble finding a specific security, it may not be listed on the Munich stock exchange yet. In this case, you can request the security to be listed on the exchange.
To request a listing, send an email to listing@gettex.de with the subject line "Listing Request". In the body of the email, include the name of the proposed security and its ISIN using the following template in english:
"Please add [title name] with ISIN [title ISIN] to gettex. Please confirm if and when listing can take place".
The Munich stock exchange reviews listing requests on a case-by-case basis, and makes decisions to list securities at their own discretion. Generally, securities should have a liquid market, be available to European retail investors and need to offer euro settlement via Clearstream (especially for ETFs).
Please check the gettex website if your desired product is indeed not available on the exchange. You can check this via https://www.gettex.de/en/search/.
If the product is available on the exchange but not via the Scalable Broker, factors including retail availability and distribution rights in Italy may be responsible, and we cannot provide it to you at this time.
Trading orders can only be accepted in our app or online by logging in to your Scalable Capital account. Telephone orders in particular are not possible.
Select the desired security in our app or online by logging in to your Scalable Capital account. Navigate to your broker portfolio, and use the buttons "Buy" or "Sell" to start the order process. The put option is only available if you already hold shares of the security.
Limit order: With this order, a limit price can be defined. The order will only be executed at this predefined price or better. This way, you can protect yourself against sudden price jumps. Due to the limit, there is a possibility that the order can be executed partially or not at all. The limit order is valid for 360 days. During this period, it can be cancelled at any time, provided that not all ordered items have been executed.
Stop order: With this order, a stop price can be defined. When the stop price is reached, your order will be activated as a market order and executed at the best possible price during trading hours. Under certain circumstances, this price can deviate significantly from the stop price due to price jumps. It may happen that the order is never activated and therefore not executed.
The stop order is valid for 360 days. During this period, it can be cancelled at any time, provided that not all ordered items have been executed.
Stop limit order: As a combination of the two preceding order types, with this order both a limit and a stop price are specified. When the stop price is reached, your order will be activated as a limit order and then executed only at the limit price or better. This way, you can protect yourself against sudden price jumps. On the other hand, it may happen that the order can only be partially executed or not at all. The stop limit order is valid for 360 days. During this period, it can be cancelled at any time, provided that not all ordered items have been executed.
Please note: If you enter both a stop and a limit price in the order screen, this does not constitute an OCO order. The Scalable Broker does not currently offer a One-Cancels-the-Other ("OCO") order.
Market order: This is only offered for sell orders. For buy orders for which no limit price is defined (see above), a security limit is automatically set (max. 5% above the last ask price). This protects you against significant price jumps when buying.
Sell orders can also be placed as market orders. In this case, the order is executed at the next possible price during trading hours. Due to price jumps, this may differ significantly from the last price at the time the order was placed. The market order is only valid for the trading day on which it was placed.
Directly after a security purchase, you can also create automatic orders with which you can realise potential profits or limit losses:
Take-profit order: The take-profit order can be created directly after a security purchase. It is a limit order where you set a price above the buy price at which a security is automatically sold. The aim is to realise potential profits before the price falls again.
Stop-loss order: A stop-loss order can be created after a security has been bought. With a stop-loss order, you set a price below the purchase price, which may be reached or fallen below at the maximum. If this occurs, a sell order is triggered. With a stop-loss order, you can determine the maximum loss you can make with a security. This allows you to limit the risk of larger losses to a certain degree.
You can set up a stop or limit by clicking on "Buy" or "Sell" in a position view, selecting the right-hand tab "Number of shares" and entering the desired number of shares for the purchase or sale. Clicking on "Prepare order" opens another window in which you can enter the desired stop or limit price at which the order is to be triggered.
Please note that if you enter a limit and a stop at the same time, this is a stop limit order and not a One Cancels the Other (OCO) order.
By clicking on the "Buy (incurs fee)" or "Sell (incurs fee)" field, the stop or limit order is set up accordingly. In the case of a market order, the sale at the next available price is immediately ordered at this point.
It is possible to set up take-profit or stop-loss orders for securities you already have in your portfolio. To get started click the Sell button in the detail view of the security you want to protect and define the target amount or the number of shares to be sold. Subsequently use the steps outlined below:
How-to set up a take-profit order
- Add a limit price, i.e. the highest price you expect that share to achieve and at which you want to sell.
- Click Sell to create a pending sell order with a limit price (take-profit order).
- The order will be executed automatically, once the security price reaches the specified limit.
How-to set up a stop-loss order
- Add a stop price, i.e. the lowest price per unit at which you want to sell.
- As soon as the specified stop price is reached, the order will become a market order (stop-loss order). Note: It may get executed at a lower price.
- To prevent your shares from selling at a lower price than your specified stop price, you can add a limit price (stop-limit order).
- Click Sell to create a pending sell order with a stop or stop-limit.
Orders can be placed on gettex a stock exchange of Bayrische Börse AG, or Xetra, operated by Deutsche Börse AG. In principle, neither brokerage fees nor exchange fees are charged on gettex. The public law structure guarantees the neutrality that is indispensable for safeguarding the interests of market participants, investors, and issuers.
The order fee is €3.99 per order, also in the PRIME Broker or PRIME+ Broker. In addition to that, there is an trading fee for Xetra. For Scalable Broker this is only 0.01% of the executed volume (minimum 1.50 euro). The trading venue fee covers all third-party costs for trading and settlement. The settlement is carried out by the custodian bank.
An overview of all costs can be found here.
On gettex, you can usually trade ETFs, shares, and funds Monday through Friday from 8am to 10pm. Stock exchange holidays are excluded. You can find gettex's trading calendar here.
On Xetra, you can trade Monday through Friday from 9am to 5:30pm. Stock exchange holidays are excluded. You can find Xetra's trading calendar here.
On trading days, the Scalable Broker allows orders to be placed around the clock. From 12:15am to 11:30pm, you can place or cancel orders in our app or online by logging in to your Scalable Capital account. Stop and limit orders created outside trading hours are executed at the next possible time during trading hours. Market orders are generally only valid for the day on which they are created. If they are created before the opening of the stock exchange, they are executed at the next possible time during trading hours. Market orders placed after trading closes expire.
Please note that different trading hours may apply to certain derivatives. You can find further information in the “Key Investor Information Document” or on the providers’ websites.
You can buy and sell securities on the same day. You can also see real-time prices of the securities.
Scalable Broker only offers exchange trading. This offers additional security for the investor. Stock exchange trading is strictly regulated and compliance with stock exchange rules is monitored by the Exchange Supervisory Authority.
In addition, each stock exchange has its own trade monitoring center. Their tasks are defined by law. It ensures proper trading and offers protection against any price manipulation. Investors can contact the Trading Surveillance Office as the exchange's supervisory body if they have any concerns about price fixing during execution. Scalable Capital is happy to assist you in clarifying the facts of the case.
You cannot buy fractions directly. However, with all savings plans we also buy fractions of ETFs for you so that your savings amount can be fully invested. As long as your savings plan is active, these fractions are repeatedly combined to form whole number securities.
If you want to sell a security that has been saved and therefore contains fractions, you can of course also sell the resulting fractions again. Please note that no individual fractions can be sold, but rather the entire position must be sold.
When your order is executed depends on the selected order type and the price development of the security. With Smart Predict however, a feature available in PRIME Broker, you can see the probability of a limit or stop order being executed within the next hour.
Trading on an exchange is determined by supply and demand. In principle, it can therefore happen with many types of orders that only a part of the ordered quantity can be executed, or nothing at all. Partial executions do not incur additional costs.
A placed order can be cancelled free of charge under "Transactions" if it has not yet been fully executed. A direct modification of an order is not possible. If you want to change an order that has not yet been executed, cancel it and set it again.
According to the Conditions for Transactions on the Munich Stock Exchange (IV. Section), trades can be cancelled retroactively by the exchange under certain conditions. This applies in particular to so-called mistrades. Mistrades can, for example, be caused by technical malfunctions or an obviously deviating reference price. In the event of a cancellation of your already executed order, you will be informed by e-mail. Limit or stop orders will not be reactivated. Therefore, if necessary, please place the corresponding order again.
In very volatile market phases or in the case of announcements that strongly influence the price of one or more securities, the Exchange Supervisory Authority may suspend trading in individual securities. In extreme situations, the entire exchange trading may also be suspended. During this time, trading in the securities concerned is not possible.
Proceeds from sales are available as a credit balance immediately after execution after deducting a safety margin for any taxes and can be used again directly for the purchase of securities. After booking, the full sales proceeds are available on the following day.
However, they are only available for withdrawal once the trades have been booked by the custodian bank. This is because securities transactions are not actually booked until two trading days after the trade has been concluded on the stock exchange (so-called settlement).
With our exclusive partners DWS Xtrackers, Invesco, and iShares by BlackRock, we provide low cost access to numerous high-quality ETFs. In addition to the purchase of ETFs from an order size of 250 euros, we provide many additional features and data on the ETFs of the PRIME partners.
An overview of all available ETFs can be found here.
You can set up price alerts for all securities and adjust them at any time.
To do so, click on the security that you want to set a price alert for. On the overview page of the security, click on the bell icon in the upper right corner. You can create multiple price alerts for the security. The number of active price alerts is indicated by a number on the bell icon.
In the FREE Broker you can set up to three price alerts for securities. In PRIME Broker or PRIME+ Broker you can set as many price alerts as you like.
Smart Predict is a feature used when placing limit or stop orders. It shows the probability of a limit or stop order being executed within the next hour. The probabilities displayed update automatically and in real time when changing the desired price, or if the price of the security fluctuates. Smart Predict is available to PRIME Broker clients.
Savings plan
Savings plans can be set up on ETFs, shares, crypto ETPs and funds.
All ETFs and crypto ETPs offered by Scalable Broker are eligible for savings plans. An overview of all available ETFs can be found here.
Many stocks and funds that are available in the Scalable Broker can also be purchased through savings plans. There are no restrictions regarding the size of the company or the location of its headquarters.
We are constantly reviewing whether a savings plan function can be set up for new securities in order to constantly expand our offering.
All savings plans can be set up starting from an amount of 1 euro, with no order fee. This applies to all Scalable Broker plans (FREE Broker, PRIME Broker, PRIME+ Broker).
Find the security you want through the search function and click on "Set up a savings plan" on the overview page.
To set up a plan, select:
- The amount you wish to invest
- The frequency of the savings plan.
- The execution date, which is the day of the month you want to execute the plan.
- Inflation protection: You have the option to automatically adjust the amount according to inflation, increasing the amount by 2, 3, 5 or 8 % per year, and the adjustment is applied proportionally after each execution of the savings plan
- Deposit method: Deposits to fund your savings plans can be made by direct debit or from your Scalable account cash balance. If your cash balance is your method of choice, but you do not have a sufficient amount, your deposit will be withdrawn automatically by SEPA Direct Debit.
Important: In case you have selected direct debit, the withdrawal will be made 3-4 business days before the execution date.
To adjust a savings plan, click on the security with the savings plan that you want to adjust. On the overview page of the security, click on the current savings plan displayed below the chart (in the app) or on the top right of the screen (in the web browser). Change your desired amount, execution date, frequency and inflation protection and click on "Set up savings plan" to confirm.
To adjust the execution date and frequency of a savings plan, click on the security with the savings plan that you want to adjust. On the overview page of the security, click on the current savings plan displayed below the chart (in the app) or on the top right of the screen (in the web browser). Change the execution date and frequency, and click on "Set up savings plan" to confirm.
To suspend a savings plan, click on the desired security.
On the overview page of the security, click on the displayed savings plan, e.g. "50 euros monthly".
If you are in the mobile app, your savings plan will be displayed below the chart, in the desktop version you will find it at the top right.
Click on "Delete savings plan" here to deactivate the savings plan. A very short-term deactivation of a savings plan may no longer be processed. Of course, you can reset the savings plan at any time.
To add inflation protection, click on the security with the savings plan that you want to adjust. On the overview page of the security, click on the current savings plan displayed below the chart (in the app) or on the top right of the screen (in the web browser). Add a percentage value by which the savings plan rate should increase over time and click on "Set up savings plan" to confirm.
Savings plans can be executed monthly, bi-monthly, quarterly, semi-annually or annually on nine different days (1st, 4th, 7th, 10th, 13th, 16th, 19th, 22nd and 25th of a month).
Inflation adjustment is available. You can determine an adjustment rate in percent (2 %, 3 %, 5 % or 8 %) by which your savings amount should increase each year. The adjustment is made proportionally after each savings plan execution.
Once credited to your broker account, the savings amount will not increase your cash balance, as it is reserved for the automatic purchase of the savings plan's corresponding security.
Details on your personally available credit can be found in the customer area. Click on your credit balance on the overview page of your portfolio. Afterwards, you can see your currently available cash amount for investments or withdrawals.
Debit by direct debit: The savings plans are debited from your checking account by SEPA direct debit, depending on the specified execution day and interval. If you have set up several savings plans for the same execution day, only one direct debit will be collected for all savings plans. For example, if you save for three securities of 100 euros each on the 2nd of the month, we will collect 300 euros from your checking account in one collective posting. We will order the payments in good time before the desired execution date. Once credited to your brokerage account, the savings amount does not increase your available balance, as it is reserved for the savings plan. The purchase is automatically instructed by us, you do not need to do anything else.
Debit from the settlement account: Savings plans are debited from your clearing account depending on the specified execution date and interval. Make sure that your clearing account is sufficiently funded at the time of savings plan execution. If your clearing account is not sufficiently funded, the amount will be automatically debited from your current account.
Savings plans are invested at the time of most favorable conditions on the execution date you have selected, that is, at times of highest market liquidity.
In your client area you will see the details of the securities purchase, including the time, immediately after execution.
In order to reach your desired savings plan amount, we also buy fractional shares of ETFs, stocks, crypto ETPs and funds. However, fractional shares can only be traded up to the third decimal place. To ensure that the savings amount is not exceeded, the fractional shares bought through your savings plan may therefore be rounded down.
Savings plan not invested at all: This can occur with very small savings amounts combined with very high security prices. Example: If you set up a savings plan of 1 euro and the securities price is 1,500 euros, we would have to buy 0.0007 shares. However, since fractional shares can only be purchased up to three decimal places and the savings amount should not be exceeded, this is rounded down to 0.000 shares. The savings amount can therefore not be invested and will subsequently be credited to your cash balance.
Savings amount only partially invested: You have set up a savings plan of 100 euros on a security, which costs exactly 150 euros at the time of purchase, for example. If your savings plan buys 0.667 shares of this security for you, the purchase price would be higher than your savings plan at 100.05 euros. Therefore, only 0.666 shares are bought and thus 99.90 euros are invested. The remaining 0.10 euros will be credited to your cash balance.
With all savings plans, we also buy fractional shares of securities so that the determined savings plan amount can be reached. For example, if you have a savings plan of 50 euros on an ETF that trades at 100 euros at the time of purchase, your savings plan will buy 0.5 units. As long as the savings plan is active, these fractional shares are repeatedly combined into whole securities.
If you want to sell a security that was purchased with a savings plan and you therefore hold fractional shares, you can of course also sell the fractional shares again without additional costs. However, it is not possible to trade only a part of the held fractional shares. The entire position must always be sold.
Pieces purchased with savings plans cannot be sold again immediately due to the investment in fractions, but only after complete booking by the custodian bank. This is usually the case on the day after the investment.
Processing & Taxes
The tax identification number ('TIN') is an internationally, uniquely assigned number used to identify taxable individuals.
In Italy, the TIN corresponds to your fiscal number (Codice Fiscale). It consists of 16 characters and can be found on on the health card or on the back of the electronic identity card.
Financial institutions are responsible for collecting information from their clients regarding tax residence and the fiscal number. The latter allows the taxpayer to be formally identified, since it is attached to his or her name in the tax administration's database.
Scalable Capital offers an intuitive tax report to assist you with your tax filing.
The report is prepared by KPMG AG (Zurich, Switzerland) based on data provided by Scalable Capital and includes:
- Detailed information on how to use the report.
- An overview of the data you need to complete your tax return.
- Additional information on relevant transactions.
Please note: Scalable Capital does not provide legal and/or tax advice. If you have specific questions about your tax return, please contact your tax advisor.
Scalable Capital is a company with legal jusrisdiction in Germany and, for now, it will not have a branch in Italy. As such, clients' account will be under the declarative regime (regime dichiarativo).
Through a simple and easy-to-use tax report, which includes the pre-filled forms from Agenzia delle Entate, clients have a service that is even more advantageous than the classic administered regime (regime amministrato).
Once clients receive the report, which will be provided well in advance of any Italian tax deadline, they have all the information needed to file the tax return, once a year. That way clients will have the benefits of the declarative regime, but the tax calculations will be done for them, at no extra cost.
What are the benefits of the declarative regime?
-Ability to reinvest gross profits: with the declaratory regime clients receive gross profits in their portfolio, having the opportunity to reinvest and potentially generate profits on a higher capital basis. In practice, clients get the profits immediately and the taxes will only be paid the following year.
- Tax optimization: with the declaratory regime, clients can offset capital losses generated and can carry forward capital losses from the previous four years. In addition, capital losses can be recovered by another broker or institution always under the declarative regime.
Please note that Scalable Capital does not provide tax advisory services.
Interest, like dividends from stock or gains from the sale of securities, may be subject to tax. Scalable Capital offers an intuitive tax report to assist you with your tax filing.
For US withholding tax, the custodian bank (Baader Bank) can grant a lower tax rate as a 'Qualified Intermediary'. In this case, a reduction of the withholding tax from 30% to 15% is possible. According to the double taxation treaty USA - Italy, the automatic reduction of the US withholding tax takes place for non-US persons with Italian citizenship, Italian residence and tax liability in Italy.
For foreigners living in Italy, the legitimation must be done by means of a W-8BEN form. To do so, send us the completed form by e-mail to service-it@scalable.capital. Please make sure that you provide complete information when submitting the form.
If you are not subject to tax in Italy, the US withholding tax is regulated in the country-specific double taxation agreement between the USA and your tax country.
Distributions (e.g. dividends or interest) are credited to your clearing account at Baader Bank. You can see the current status in our app or online by logging in to your Scalable Capital account. Distributions can either be reinvested or withdrawn.
For shares of German companies you are entitled to a dividend if you hold the share in your securities account on the day of their Annual General Meeting (AGM). From the first trading day after the AGM, the share is traded "ex-dividend", as from then on there is no longer any entitlement to dividends. When you receive a dividend, it is automatically credited to your clearing account. However, the actual distribution of the dividend does not have to take place immediately after the AGM.
For dividends from foreign companies, some of which pay out a dividend several times a year, please refer to the quarterly reports or the investor relations page of the respective company.
If the possibility of participating in an Annual General Meeting exists, the custodian bank will inform you about this. This applies to companies with headquarters in the European Economic Area (ARUG II). The announcement will be made available to you in your Scalable mailbox in the corresponding document "Annual General Meeting". The fees for the issuance of admission tickets to an Annual General Meeting can be found in the Special Conditions to the List of Prices and Services (p. 68) of Baader Bank. When ordering admission tickets for a foreign Annual General Meeting, please note that third-party fees of the depositary bank of up to EUR 150.00 may be incurred (Bundesgesetzblatt, BGBl I 2019, p. 2637).
Note: Your right to participate may lapse in whole or in part if you change your position shortly before the Annual General Meeting.
Taking into account the re-registration deadline, please send us the reply from the "Annual General Meeting" document with your instructions as a completed PDF by e-mail to corporateaction@scalable.capital. Please ensure that the information contained in this document is complete and readable when sending it. Instructions that are not sent in the defined format (PDF) cannot be processed.
If there is an opportunity to participate in a corporate action, we will inform you about it. The announcement will be made available to you in your Baader Bank client portal. You received the access data for this by e-mail when you opened your account.
You will also find information on corporate actions in your mailbox in the Scalable customer area in the corresponding document "Securities Notice".
Please send us the reply from the document " Securities Notice" with your instructions as a completed PDF by e-mail to corporateaction@scalable.capital, taking into account the deadline for reply. Please ensure that the information contained in this document is complete and legible when sending it. Instructions that are not sent in the defined format (PDF) via e-mail cannot be processed.
In the case of an optional dividend, the instruction can be submitted digitally in your Scalable Capital client area. To do so, open the document "Securities Notice" in your mailbox and follow the link provided. There, you will find all current corporate actions of your securities held within the instruction period until the instruction is given. Click on the corporate action you wish to participate in and select your desired option.
Please note that only timely instructions can be sent to our custodian bank. Collective instructions across several classes cannot be accepted. All instructions must be transmitted in the defined format (PDF). Instructions for unannounced corporate actions are also void. If your instruction has already been transmitted to our custodian bank, it can no longer be withdrawn and remains active during the execution period.
Costs
You have the choice between three plans:
FREE Broker:
All savings plans on shares, ETFs and other exchange-traded products (ETP) as well as buys with an order volume of 250 euros or more in all products of our PRIME partners Invesco, iShares by BlackRock and DWS Xtrackers (Xetra trades excluded) are free of charge. For all other trades on gettex, order fees of 0.99 euros apply. Crypto ETPs are additionally subject to the spread surcharge (see below) in trading and in the savings plan. For sales of PRIME ETFs, fees of 0.99 euros are charged in the FREE BROKER.
PRIME Broker:
For only 2.99 euros per month (billed annually at 35.88 euros), in addition to fee-free savings plans on shares, ETFs and other exchange-traded products (ETP), you receive an unlimited number of trades on gettex without order fees from 250 euros order volume. Trades below 250 euros cost 0.99 euros on gettex. Crypto ETPs are subject to a reduced spread surcharge (see below) in trading and in the savings plan. You also receive better conditions for real-time payment with Instant (0.69 %). You can also create as many portfolio groups and price alerts as you wish.
PRIME+ Broker:
In the PRIME+ Broker, you enjoy all the benefits of the PRIME Broker with flexible monthly payments at only 4.99 euros per month and also benefit from 2.3 % interest p.a.* on uninvested cash in your clearing account.
You can switch to another broker model at any time free of charge. You can find all fees per price model here.
Regardless of the model you choose
gettex trades:
All trades on gettex below 250 Euros are charged with 0.99 Euros. This applies to all our broker plans.
Xetra trades:
For order executions via the Xetra exchange, all clients incur a fee of 3.99 euros per trade plus a trading venue fee (0.01% of the order volume, min. 1.50 euros), regardless of the pricing model. The latter covers all third-party costs for trading and settlement. Partial executions are not charged more than once.
Crypto spread surcharge:
In addition to the above fees, the spread surcharge applies for each execution of a savings plan or trade in a crypto ETP. This amounts to 0.99 % of the executed savings plan or order volume for FREE Broker clients or 0.69 % of the executed savings plan or order volume for PRIME Broker and PRIME Broker flex clients.
Any spread surcharges incurred will be displayed to you under "Cost information" prior to the placement of trading orders or when setting up or changing a savings plan.
Product costs for crypto ETPs
Ongoing product costs are incurred for trading in crypto ETPs.
Real-time payments via Instant:
Real-time payments via Instant cost 0.99% in the FREE Broker model, and only 0.69% of the deposit amount in PRIME Broker and PRIME Broker flex. The following applies to every deposit: From 5,000 euros, every additional euro is free of charge.
There are no additional costs such as custody account fees, flat-rate third-party fees, or issue surcharges. It is also possible to switch between the price models at any time: To do so, go to the "Profile" tab of your broker. Under "Products" you will find the option to change your broker plan at any time.
Please note: There is a reference in the customer documents to an administration fee of 0.75 % p.a. This refers exclusively to our separate product, "wealth management." If you only use our broker, this fee is not relevant for you.
Here you will find a list of all possible fees of the Scalable Broker by model.
*Conditions apply scalable.capital/interest
The fees for using PRIME Broker or PRIME+ Broker are debited annually or monthly from your reference account (current account).
All other fees, for example for executed trading orders, the spread surcharge for Crypto ETPs or fees for real-time payments via Instant will be debited directly from your Broker account at our custodian bank.
Scalable Broker clients do not pay negative interest when they open a securities depository through Baader Bank.
Costs for regular management of the securities depository are included in Scalable Capital's fees.
Crypto
Trading
With Scalable Crypto you can trade cryptocurrencies as easily as stocks or ETFs as crypto ETPs* on regulated trading venues (Xetra, gettex) in Germany. An investment is possible both as a one-time purchase and from 1 euro per month in a savings plan. No separate account, wallet or re-identification is required for this.
The purchased securities are securely held in your securities account at the custodian bank. The equivalent value of your investment in the corresponding cryptocurrency is held in custody for you by the issuer at cryptocustodians. In contrast to trading via crypto exchanges, you do not need to hold your investment independently in your own crypto wallet.
*Crypto Exchange Traded Products, or "Crypto ETP" for short, is a collective term for all products that track the value of an underlying cryptocurrency. In addition to the designation "ETP", product manufacturers sometimes use the designations Exchange-Traded-Note (ETN) or Exchange-Traded-Cryptocurrency (ETC).
With Scalable Crypto you can trade the following cryptocurrencies:
- Bitcoin
- Algorand
- Cardano
- Chainlink
- Cosmos
- Ethereum
- Litecoin
- Matic/Polygon
- Polkadot
- Solana
- Tezos
- Uniswap
- XRP
The products available through Scalable Crypto are physically backed by the respective underlying cryptocurrency.
Your Crypto ETPs are securely held in your custody account at the custodian bank, just like your stocks or ETFs.
You do not need your own wallet to trade with Scalable Crypto. The issuer of the respective crypto-securities takes over the custody of the cryptocurrencies for you. Thereby, the underlying cryptocurrencies are physically deposited with crypto custodians.
Some ETP issuers offer a transfer of the deposited cryptocurrency to a private wallet. In this case, any applicable fees on the part of the issuer as well as additional documentation effort (identity check, money laundering check) must be taken into account. Please contact the issuer of the respective crypto ETP directly if you have any questions.
With us you trade Crypto as easy and secure as stocks and ETFs as Crypto ETP on a regulated exchange in Germany. Your entry will therefore be rounded down to whole ETP pieces, but at least to 1 piece.
Crypto ETPs incur annual product costs on the part of the issuer for the management of the securities. This is how issuers cover their costs related to transactions on the crypto network, custody of the coins, etc. The costs are charged directly against the Crypto entitlement of the ETP units you hold, so it will decrease slightly over time.
For selected Crypto ETPs, the Crypto Drawing Entitlement may increase as a result of Staking Rewards received. See the section "Which cryptocurrencies are currently being staked?" for more information.
Security & privacy
Scalable Capital is an independent securities institution with the regulatory permission of the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) to provide securities services pursuant to section 15 WpIG. Scalable Capital offers in particular the service of contract brokerage ("brokerage"). We are subject to supervision by the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (Bundesanstalt für Finanzdienstleistungsaufsicht) and the German Federal Bank (Deutsche Bundesbank).
How secure are my money and my investments? What happens in the event that Scalable Capital or your partner bank becomes insolvent?
Call money: In the event of the insolvency of the partner bank, the cash in your clearing account is protected by the statutory deposit protection of the EdB up to a deposit amount of 100,000 euros (cf. details on this at edb-banken.de/en) and beyond that by the Deposit Protection Fund of Private Banks (BdB). View further information on the scope of protection of the partner bank by the Deposit Protection Fund.
Securities: In the event of insolvency of the custodian bank, you have a claim to surrender of your securities. These do not fall into the insolvency estate and are therefore also protected.
As a securities institution, Scalable Capital is not authorised to take possession or ownership of clients' assets. The clients' assets are held in custody by our partner bank. In the event of an insolvency of Scalable Capital, the client assets will therefore not fall into the insolvency estate of Scalable Capital GmbH.
Furthermore, Scalable Capital GmbH is assigned to the Compensatory Fund of Securities Trading Companies (EdW). The EdW can pay compensation if an institution is no longer able to fulfil its "liabilities from securities transactions" towards its customers for reasons directly related to its financial situation (and BaFin has determined the case for compensation).
At Scalable we want to ensure that your account is protected against any type of attack. Therefore, the Scalable Login utilises leading edge technology to scan the Web and track large security breaches that occur on third-party sites (unrelated to Scalable).
To change your password, click on "Forgot your password?" under the input mask on the login page or on "Reset" in the Scalable customer area in the menu item "Profile" in the section "Password".
After entering your email address, you will receive an email from us with a link to change your password.
Please note that in addition to the minimum requirements for the strength of your password, a maximum length of approx. 70 characters should not be exceeded. In case of a longer password, it will only be saved up to the maximum length mentioned above.
For security reasons, we conduct the login process to your personal customer area via web browser. This guarantees a higher security standard when logging in and reduces the risk of falling victim to a phishing or fraud attempt.
The login to your Scalable client area is always done via a secure subdomain. Customers with a custody account at Baader Bank use secure.scalable.capital/login.
If your account does not hold any active portfolios, we will block it after a few months of inactivity for security reasons. A blocked account can be manually unlocked by our customer service. In this case or in case of technical problems, please contact our customer service at support-it@scalable.capital.
Data protection is very important to us. We use modern IT infrastructure to ensure the security of your data. Your personal data (e.g. address, account data, financial circumstances) is transmitted in the course of registration as well as contract conclusion, and your data is always encrypted and stored in a data center in Germany.
Please refer to our privacy policy in this context.
In order to change your password, click on "Forgot password?" under the entry mask on the login page of our homepage. In the Scalable App, this change can be made under "Profile" in the section "Password" by clicking on "Request link to change". After entering your e-mail address, you will receive a link via e-mail from us to change your password.
To change your personal data, please log in to your personal customer area via our website or app. You can change your data under "Profile". Please activate two-factor authentication in the Scalable Capital app before making any changes.
In accordance with Art. 15 GDPR, you can request a copy of the personal data processed about you. To do so, please log into your personal customer area on our website and go to "Profile". Under the "Personal Information" section, you can request your data at any time. Confirm your request via two-factor authentication (2FA) in the Scalable Capital app. Please note that access is only available via the web browser. It is not possible to make a request via iOS or Android app.
The scope as well as the manner of processing your personal data depends on which of our offers you use. For example, if you have only subscribed to a newsletter from us, the processing of your personal data is different than if you are a customer of our wealth management or brokerage offering. For more information, please also refer to our privacy policy.
Two-factor authentication involves using two separate factors to verify access to your account. The first factor is your username and password. The second factor is something that only you have access to, for example, your smartphone. As a result, an unauthorized person without the authorized smartphone will not be able to access your account or make sensitive changes even if they should be able to guess your username and password.
Therefore, we recommend using 2FA. It can be easily set up in your Scalable Capital app in just a few steps. Currently, sensitive changes in the app (such as changing the reference account) and now (as part of the beta) login can already be protected using 2FA.
Activation: Log in to your Scalable Capital account in our app. Go to "Profile" and then select "Two-factor authentication" in the menu. During the activation process, you will receive an email with an activation link that you will need to confirm on the mobile device that you want to link.
Deactivation: Log in to your Scalable Capital account in our app. Go to "Profile" and then select "Two-factor authentication" in the menu. Select the option to disable two-factor authentication. You may reenable two-factor authentication in the same way again at any time.
As part of the activation process, you will receive a backup code. Keep this in a safe place that is only accessible to you. You may need the backup code in case you change or lose your smartphone.
Deactivation with backup code:
Log in to the Scalable app.
Select "Profile", "Two-factor authentication" and "Disable".
Select "No access to linked device?" and then enter your backup code.
If you have enabled 2FA for login, select "No access to linked device?" when you log in, and then enter your backup code.
If you do not have your linked device or backup code, please contact our customer service at service@scalable.capital.
Enable 2FA (see "How do I enable or disable two-factor authentication (2FA)"). Afterwards, your login is automatically protected by 2FA.
If you have already activated 2FA, you can select the option to protect your login via 2FA under "Profile" and "Two-factor authentication".
If you are not sure who made a 2FA request for your account, always reject it. Furthermore, we advise you to change your password as soon as possible:
Navigate to "Profile" and request a link to change your password under "Change Password". You will then receive an email with further steps to change your password.
Alternatively, you can select the "Forgot your password?" option on the login page.
If you do not receive a 2FA request via push message on your cell phone, please check in your app settings if you have allowed notifications for Scalable Capital. Even with push notifications disabled, you should receive an active 2FA request when you open the app manually. If this is not the case, you can try closing the app completely and then restarting it. After that, you should see the active 2FA request.
Furthermore, you can try disabling 2FA via backup code and then re-enabling 2FA.
Please also check if you are using DNS filters, as they may affect the functionality of the feature.
If you do not receive a 2FA request on your phone despite the steps described above, please contact our customer service at service@scalable.capital.
Complaint
We take complaints seriously as each and every one of our clients are important to us. We believe you have a right to a fair, swift and courteous service at all times. We are a regulated entity, we treat our clients fairly and adhere to the regulations on transparency and protections related to financial services.
A complaint is any expression of dissatisfaction made by a client or potential client (complainant) to an investment services firm in connection with the latter's provision of an investment service or ancillary investment service. The term "complaint" does not necessarily have to be used. A complaint does not require a specific form.
Complaints can be made free of charge orally, in writing or electronically to the address below or to our other contact details, which can be accessed under https://it.scalable.capital/contatti in Italian and under https://it.scalable.capital/en/contact-details in English in their most current version.
Scalable Capital GmbH
Seitzstr. 8e,
80538 Munich,
Germany
Scalable Capital has established a complaints management function that is responsible for investigating complaints. This is the compliance department. You can reach it as follows:
Scalable Capital GmbH
Compliance Department
Seitzstr. 8e,
80538 Munich,
Germany
Please also see the “Complaints and disputes” section of our client documentation.
After the (potential) client has submitted the complaint, the complaint will be transferred to the client relationship management system (CRM).
The content of the complaint will be assessed (this may also include questions to the client), it will be determined whether the client's dissatisfaction is justified as regards its substance and, if necessary, a proposal for a solution will be developed. This is followed by consultation with a superior. Depending on the type, content and scope of the complaint, it may be necessary to involve the complaint management function at an early stage. Finally, feedback is provided to the (potential) client, in which Scalable Capital communicates its position regarding the complaint. The processing period between the submission of a complaint and the provision of feedback should normally not exceed five (5) business days. If no response can be provided within this period, Scalable Capital will inform the complainant of the reasons for the delay and the expected processing time.
If the client is not satisfied with our final feedback then they may contact the arbitration board of the Association of Independent Asset Managers Germany. The arbitration board of the Association of Independent Asset Managers Germany is responsible for any monetary disputes arising from or in connection with financial services contracts: VuV Ombudsman's Office, Stresemannallee 30, 60596 Frankfurt am Main, Germany, http://vuv-ombudsstelle.de/. Scalable Capital is a member of the Association of Independent Asset Managers Germany and is obliged under the latter's articles of association to participate in dispute resolution proceedings of the VuV Ombudsman's Office. The (potential) client therefore has the option of referring a complaint or other dispute to the VuV Ombudsman's Office.
Scalable Capital is not affiliated with any other recognised private consumer arbitration board.
The European Commission provides a platform for online dispute resolution for consumers who reside in the EU (in accordance with Article 14 (1) of the ODR Regulation) at http://ec.europa.eu/consumers/odr/. Scalable Capital does not participate in the online dispute resolution.
Irrespective of the option of appealing to the VuV Ombudsman’s Office, the (potential) client is free to file a civil action at their discretion.
In addition, clients may contact the complaints body of the national competent supervisory authority which may also provide for an arbitration procedure:
France: Autorité des marchés financiers – AMF
Italy: Commissione Nazionale per le Società e la Borsa – CONSOB
The Netherlands: Autoriteit Financiële Markten – AFM
Spain: Comisión Nacional del Mercado de Valores – CNMV
Austria: Finanzmarktaufsichtsbehörde – FMA.
There are risks associated with investing. The value of your investment may fall or rise. Losses of the capital invested may occur. Past performance, simulations or forecasts are not a reliable indicator of future performance. Please refer to our risk information.
Interest for PRIME+. Cash account at Baader Bank AG. Variable rate up to €100,000. Learn more.
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Scalable Capital GmbH
Seitzstraße 8e, 80538 Munich | Legal information
Responsible supervision: BaFin, Deutsche Bundesbank
Copyright © Scalable Capital GmbH | All rights reserved.
