Placing a one-off buy order
The US Investing service enables you to invest in seven US-listed exchange-traded funds (ETFs), with more ETFs and stocks coming soon!
To place a buy order, start by browsing and selecting an ETF or stock from the available options.
Click 'One-off investment' to place a single buy order.
Enter the Australian dollar amount you want to spend on the investment. The minimum amount is A$10.
We'll then display an investment preview on the screen. This shows you the amount that could be invested after fees (such as the foreign exchange fee) are taken into account.
Check the details and confirm your order.
When you confirm, we'll debit your linked bank account.
When your funds clear, which typically takes 1-2 business days, your order will be placed in the market (if it's open) or queued for when it next opens (if it's closed).
When your order is placed in the market, our brokerage provider will aim to purchase as many units as possible during market hours (at the market price) with the allocated funds.
Once your order has been executed, we'll send you an email confirmation. You can also find information on your pending and executed orders within the Spaceship mobile app.
Generally, orders are finalised within 3-4 business days.
If your investment cost less than the amount you wanted to spend on the investment, and therefore less than the amount we debited, we'll return the unused portion to your linked bank account, generally within 3-4 business days.
Can I set the price for my order?
Spaceship only accepts market orders.
Spaceship believes market orders keep things simple and encourage long-term investing by allowing customers to execute trades swiftly at the prevailing market price, removing the complexities of timing the market and encouraging a patient, disciplined approach to achieve long-term financial goals.
That means that when you place a buy order with us, you instruct our brokerage provider to execute the trade at the prevailing market price when the market is open.
This is different from a limit order, which allows you to buy shares for a specified price (or better).
Spaceship doesn't currently offer limit orders.
Will my order be executed at the best available price?
In short, yes.
Our registered brokerage provider is required to execute trades (including fractional orders) at the best available bid or ask price across all the various eligible US stock exchanges at the time the order is executed.
This is known as the National Best Bid Offer or NBBO, and it's governed by various regulatory bodies in the US.
Why did I invest less than I expected?
When you place a buy order, we ask you to enter the Australian dollar amount you want to spend on the investment.
We show you an investment preview, which is the amount that could be invested after fees are taken into account.
However, your actual investable amount will be determined by the execution price and available market volume when your order is placed in the market.
This means you may end up investing less than you wanted or than what we estimated.
Regardless, our brokerage provider will always aim to buy your units at the best available price.
When you invest less than you expected, we'll return the unused portion of your debited amount to your linked bank account.
Example: Let's say you have A$200 you want to spend on your investment. The foreign exchange fee on that amount is A$1.40, therefore you have A$198.60 for your investment. You wish to buy shares in Google. Your buy order is executed at A$100 per share, which means you receive 1.986 shares in Google.
Placing a recurring buy order
Learn more about setting up an investment plan here.