Share Trading comparison
Pepperstone vs Totality Wealth
Pepperstone and Totality Wealth sit on opposite sides of the investing fence. Pepperstone is a CFD broker — you trade contracts on share price movements, not the underlying shares themselves, and you don't get a HIN or direct ownership. Totality Wealth is a full-service broker that lets you buy real ASX and US shares under your own HIN, with CHESS sponsorship available. That single difference determines which platform makes sense for you.
Choose
Pepperstone
if…
- ›You want to trade leveraged CFDs with tight spreads and no commission on US stocks (US brokerage minimum is just 0.02 USD)
- ›You need 24/5 support and after-hours trading access — Pepperstone covers weekends and overnight sessions
- ›You want a demo account to practise strategies before risking real money
- ›You prefer multiple deposit options including PayPal, credit card, Neteller and Skrill with zero minimum deposit
- ›You're comfortable with derivative products and don't need direct share ownership, dividends, or corporate action entitlements
Choose
Totality Wealth
if…
- ›You want to own real ASX and US shares under your own HIN with CHESS sponsorship available
- ›You trade ASX shares regularly — Totality's brokerage is 0.0008% (capped effectively) with a $3 minimum, well below Pepperstone's 0.07% / $5 minimum
- ›You need access to a broader asset range including real bonds, options, and 17 global markets with actual share settlement
- ›You want dividend reinvestment plans (DRP) on your holdings
- ›You value Sharesight/Navexa integration for portfolio tracking and tax reporting
Where they differ
| Fact | Pepperstone | Totality Wealth |
|---|---|---|
| What you actually buy | Share CFDs only — no real share ownership | Real ASX and US shares under your HIN |
| ASX brokerage | $5 minimum or 0.07% | $3 minimum or 0.0008% |
| US brokerage minimum | 0.02 USD | 1 USD |
| Dividend reinvestment (DRP) | Not available | Available |
| After-hours trading | Supported | Not supported |
Verdict
Pepperstone for leveraged CFD trading; Totality Wealth for real share ownership, lower ASX brokerage, and CHESS sponsorship.
All data points side-by-side
Every verified fact for both platforms. Differences are highlighted.
| Field | Pepperstone | Totality Wealth |
|---|---|---|
| account structure | ||
| CHESS sponsorship model | — | mixed |
| Individual HIN | — | Yes |
| Individual account | Yes | Yes |
| Joint account | Yes | Yes |
| Company account | Yes | Yes |
| Trust account | Yes | Yes |
| SMSF account | No | Yes |
| Kids / minor account | No | No |
| asset coverage | ||
| ASX shares supported | No | Yes |
| ASX ETFs supported | No | Yes |
| US shares supported | No | Yes |
| US ETFs supported | No | Yes |
| Other markets supported | US, UK, DE, FR, HK, BE, CH, DK, NO, SE, FI, IE, PT, ES, AT, AU | US, GB, HK, JP, DE, FR, CA, SG, CH, NL, IT, ES, BE, AT, DK, SE, NO, FI |
| Fractional shares (ASX) | No | No |
| Fractional shares (US) | No | No |
| Options trading | No | Yes |
| CFDs supported | Yes | Yes |
| Managed funds | No | No |
| Bonds supported | No | Yes |
| IPO access | No | No |
| costs hidden | ||
| FX spread (AUD/USD) | 50% | 0.45% |
| FX spread (other currencies) | 50% | 0.45% |
| Holds USD account | Yes | Yes |
| FX currency switch trick | No | No |
| Market data fees | $0/month | $0/month |
| Conditional order fees | $0 | $0 |
| Corporate action fees | Not applicable — Pepperstone offers share CFDs only, not real shares. Clients have no entitlement to rights issues, SPPs, takeover offers or shareholder voting. Dividend adjustments are passed through as cash entries on share CFD positions (credited on longs, debited on shorts, with franking credits not passed through). | Custodian processes corporate actions; proxy voting subscription EUR 30/year + EUR 5 per vote; new instrument requests USD 200 for Platinum / free for VIP legacy tiers; reporting fee USD 50 for Classic email reports. |
| costs visible | ||
| ASX brokerage minimum | — | $3 |
| ASX brokerage percentage | — | 0.08% |
| ASX brokerage threshold | — | $3,750 |
| US brokerage minimum | — | US$1 |
| US brokerage percentage | — | 0.08% |
| Monthly platform fee | $0/month | $0/month |
| Annual platform fee | $0/year | $0/year |
| Inactivity fee | $0 | $0 |
| Withdrawal fee (AUD) | $0 | $0 |
| Off-market transfer fee | — | $50 |
| identity and trust | ||
| Legal entity name | Pepperstone Group Limited | Totality Wealth Limited (formerly Saxo Capital Markets (Australia) Pty Ltd) |
| AFSL number | 414,530 | 280,372 |
| Year founded | 2,010 | 2,012 |
| Parent / ownership | Privately held. Majority owner FX Group Holdings (Fiona Lock, CEO Tamas Szabo and Andrew Defina) acquired the 60% stake previously held by CPE Capital (formerly CHAMP Private Equity) in 2018; founders Owen Kerr and Joe Davenport retain the remaining 40%. | DMA (Johannesburg, South Africa) 80.1% / Saxo Bank A/S (Denmark) 19.9% |
| Country of incorporation | AU | AU |
| Public company status | private | private |
| money movement | ||
| Minimum initial deposit | $0 | $0 |
| Minimum subsequent purchase | $0 | $0 |
| Deposit methods | PayID, BPAY, bank transfer, debit card, credit card, PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Pay, Neteller, Skrill | bank_transfer, BPAY, credit_card, debit_card, PayPal, Wise |
| Settlement period | N/A (CFDs are not settled — positions are open derivative contracts marked-to-market continuously, with overnight swap charges in lieu of settlement) | T+2 ASX, T+1 US |
| Withdrawal time | Up to 2 business days for cards, PayID, BPAY and domestic bank transfer; up to 1 business day for PayPal/Neteller/Skrill. | 1-3 business days |
| platform ux | ||
| iOS app | Yes | Yes |
| Android app | Yes | Yes |
| Desktop platform | Yes | Yes |
| Demo account | Yes | Yes |
| Free real-time market data | Yes | No |
| Free research reports | Yes | Yes |
| 2FA support | authenticator | app |
| Customer support channels | phone, email, live chat | phone, email, live_chat |
| Support hours (AU time) | 24/5 (Monday morning AEST to Saturday morning AEST), with 18 hours coverage on weekends; Melbourne-based Australian support team available during AEST business hours. | Mon-Fri 08:30-17:30 Sydney time |
| Education content | video + courses | extensive |
| tax and reporting | ||
| Australian tax statement | No | No |
| Distribution component breakdown | No | No |
| CGT calculator / report | No | No |
| Sharesight / Navexa integration | No | Yes |
| trading mechanics | ||
| Market orders | Yes | Yes |
| Limit orders | Yes | Yes |
| Stop loss orders | Yes | Yes |
| Conditional orders | Yes | Yes |
| Auto-invest / DCA | No | No |
| Auto-invest sophistication | none | none |
| DRP (dividend reinvestment) | No | Yes |
| After-hours / overnight trading | Yes | No |