Schwab expands 24/5 trading to all clients. Source: Shutterstock

Charles Schwab has officially rolled out 24-hour trading access for all its international clients, enabling them to trade an expanded selection of securities, including S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 stocks, five days a week.

The move follows a successful pilot programme and aims to provide greater flexibility to global investors.

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Ameritrade, acquired by Schwab in 2020, pioneered 24/5 trading in 2018, making it the first US retail broker to offer the service. Schwab began piloting expanded overnight access in November 2024 and has now made it widely available.

During the pilot phase, traders were most active at the beginning and end of the overnight session, mirroring traditional market hours. The most frequently traded stocks included Tesla (TSLA), NVIDIA (NVDA), Palantir (PLTR), MicroStrategy (MSTR), and AMD.

Clients can now access 24/5 trading by selecting the EXTO order type on Schwab’s thinkorswim platform.

James Kostulias, Managing Director and Head of Trading Services at Charles Schwab stated: “We are proud to have been at the forefront of overnight trading several years ago and that we are continuing to evolve and enhance our capabilities and platforms to meet the needs of today’s modern traders.

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“Each day, Schwab facilitates about twice the trades of any competitor that shares that figure publicly, and we know that expanding access to overnight trading to our millions of clients is a significant milestone not just for Schwab, but for our industry. In consideration of Schwab’s leadership position and our ‘through clients’ eyes’ strategy, we have worked hard to combine the power of our world-class trading platforms, specialised 24-hour service and support, and tailored education to deliver an overnight trading experience that reflects the unique dynamics and potential risks this offering can present, while empowering clients to trade in the ways that suit them and their lifestyle best.”

Richard Flynn, Managing Director at Charles Schwab UK, added: “We believe we’re the first major investment platform to offer UK investors 24-hour access to US markets with a dedicated support network. Our service means investors can call one of our licensed professionals with local knowledge at any time of day to discuss trading strategy, investing strategy, or broader financial planning. UK investors can use our platform to purchase US-listed equities with a $0 commission for online trades with no service fees, and a $0 minimum to open an account. As the platform is dollar-based, investors are also not required to pay currency conversion fees to buy US equities.”