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Lightyear vs Interactive Investor : Fees, Safety & Trading Conditions Compared (2026)
Broker Name
Lightyear
Interactive Investor
Broker Overview
Broker Type (e.g., Market Maker, ECN/STP)
STP
None
Years of Existence / Established Year
2020
1995
Customer Base / Number of Accounts
Info not available
over 430,000
Regulation & Security
Regulations (governing bodies)
FCA EFSA
FCA
Awards Won (count for the last 2 years)
No major awards listed
Best Stocks and Shares ISA - The Times Money Mentor Awards 2024 Boring Money Best Buy ISA - AIC Shareholder Engagement Award 2024 Boring Money Best Buy Pension - AIC Shareholder Engagement Award 2024 Best online stock broker 2023 - ADVFN International Financial Awards
Security Measures
SIPC, EIPSF Upto Euro 20,000
FSCS
SSL Encryption / 2FA
Yes
Yes
Segregated Funds
Yes
Yes
Negative Balance Protection
No
No
Trading Instruments/Products Offered
Assets Types / Trading Instruments (total count and breakdown)
US / EU / UK Stocks (3500+) Interest Money Market Funds Baltic Stocks Baltic Bonds
43,000 + funds, Shares, Glits
Currency Pairs
No
Yes
Commodities
No
Yes
Indices
No
Yes
Cryptocurrencies
No
No
CFDs
No
No
ETFs
Yes
Yes
Stocks
Yes
Yes
Options
No
No
Futures
No
No
Bonds
Yes
Yes
Mutual Funds
No
Yes
Fractional Shares
Exchange Traded Notes (ETNs)
No
No
Precious Metals
Yes - through Exchange Traded Commodities
Yes
Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs)
Yes - through REIT stocks
Yes
Equities
Yes
No
Trading Platforms & Technology
Trading Platform Availability
Yes
Yes
MT4
No
No
MT5
No
No
cTrader
No
No
Social Trading
Yes
Copy Trading
No
No
Other Trading Platforms (proprietary, etc.)
Lightyear's proprietary platform
Online ii Community - for social trading
Platform Compatibility (Windows, Mac, iOS, Android)
Yes
Yes only Web
Account Types & Conditions
Account Types (Retail, Pro, VIP, etc.)
Personal Business
Trading Account SIPP Stocks & Shares ISA Junior ISA Cash Savings Managed ISA Joint Trading Account Company Account
Demo Account (Yes/No)
No
No
Islamic Accounts (Yes/No)
No
No
Minimum Deposit
$0
Euro 250
Leverage Available
No
Info not available
Trade Limit (maximum per trade)
Varies for each product
Varies for each product
Commission (per account type)
Euro 0
Monthly fee ISA / Trading account - £ 4.99 for investment upto £ 50,000 - £ 11.99 (no limit) SIPP - £ 5.99 for investment upto £50,000 - £12.99 (no limit) ISA + Trading Account + SIPP - £ 9.99 for investment upto £75,000 - £ 21.99 (no limit)
Best Suited For (e.g., beginners, experienced traders)
Beginners
Beginners
Deposit & Withdrawal Options
Deposit Methods
EUR - SEPA, Debit Card, Apple Pay, Google Pay GBP - FPS, CHAPS, BACS, SWIFT, Apple Pay, Google Pay USD - ACH, FedWire, SWIFT HUF - Bank transfers within Hungary
Cash savings Ac - Bank transfer Debit cards Cheque Payit from Natwest
Withdrawal Methods
Bank Transfers
Bank Transfer
Other E-Wallets Supported
No
No
Tools & Educational Resources
Economic Calendar
No
Yes
Tools & Educational Resources (tutorials, webinars, market news, etc.)
Savings interest calculator Inflation calculator Ticker time machine Rate comparison calculator
StockScreener - Intuitive tool to explore the markets
Fees & Commissions
Trading-Related Fees
US Shares per order - 0.1% upto $1 maximum EU Shares per order - Euro 1 UK Shares per order - Euro 1 Money Market Funds - 0.25% annually Nasdaq Baltic - Euro 1 ETFs -Euro 0 Multi-currency account -Euro 0
UK & US shares, funds, ETFs, bonds and gilts - £3.99, Other international shares - £9.99 / £5.99 (Super Investor), Dividend reinvestment - £0.99, For value over £100,000 - 0.04% of trade value, Buying / Selling other international shares - £9.99, For value over £25,000 - 0.10% of trade value, International trading fees for super investors - £5.99
Spread (typical, fixed, variable)
NA
Info not available
Per Lot Fees
NA
£ 3.99 per trade
Options Contract Fees
NA
NA
Futures Contract Fees
NA
NA
Markup Fees on Spread
NA
NA
Guaranteed Stop Loss Fees
NA
NA
Maximum Leverage
Info not available
Info not available
Non-Trading Fees
Dormant Fees
$0
$0
Subscription Fees (for premium features, data feeds)
NA
Super Investor plan - £ 19.99 per month Super Investor + SIPP = £29.99 per month
Advisory Fees
NA
$0
Swap Fees (Overnight Financing)
NA
NA
Statement or Document Fee
NA
NA
Account Opening Fee
$0
NA
Account Maintenance Fee
$0
Administrative charges Share certificate withdrawal - £ 35 + VAT - Per certificate Failed payments or late settlement - £ 25 Paper documents - £ 3 + VAT per document Contract notes sent by post - £ 1.50 + VAT per document VCTs processing charge - £ 30 per application
Deposit Fee
In EUR & GBP Debit Card / ApplePay / Google Pay - First Euro500 lifetime free, 0.5% after In USD FedWire & Swift - $6.11
£ 0
Currency Conversion Fee
0.35%
Value converted FX charge £ 0 - £ 24,999.99 1.5% £ 25,000 - £ 49,999.99 1.25% £ 50,000 - £ 99,999.99 1.00% £ 100,000 - £ 599,999.99 0.50% £ 600,000 or more 0.25%
Withdrawal Fee
$0
Urgent withdrawals cost - £15
Bonuses, Promotions & Benefits
Bonuses, Promotions, and Referrals
Yes
Yes
Customer Benefits (e.g., Retirement Plan)
Yes
Yes
Trading Hours
Trading Hours (for each asset class if applicable)
Vary for each asset class
UK- Pre-market: 7 AM - 9:30 AM After-hours: 4:05 PM - 8 PM
Customer Support
Support Hours (e.g., 24/7, weekdays only)
24/7
7.45am to 5.30pm (GMT) Monday - Friday
Customer Support Methods (phone, email, live chat)
Email: mailto:[email protected], Live chat Phone number:+1 332-333-4220.
Tel: 0345 607 6001 From abroad: +44 113 346 2309
Support Languages
20+
1
Additional Information
Headquarters Location
Volta 1 Tallinn 10412 Estonia
Leeds One Embankment, Neville Street, Leeds, LS1 4DW
Complaints (for crypto brokers)
No
No
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