Is Moomoo Legit? A Full Moomoo Trading Review

It is fairly common for online brokerages to offer free or low-cost trading on stocks, bonds, mutual funds and ETFs. This is appealing to both active traders and long-term investors. This has made the online trading platform market fairly crowded and competitive, but in recent years, Moomoo has risen to prominence. In fact, in just a few short years, Moomoo has accumulated millions of users. 

While Moomoo is a fairly new platform within the online trading space, it is backed by some large names in venture capital. So, is Moomoo a good option? In this article, we’ll delve into the Moomoo platform to help you determine if this platform could be a good option for you. 

The Moomoo Basics

Moomoo has only been operating in the US market since 2018, but this emerging trading platform has quickly become a popular choice for those who are searching for a well-regulated online brokerage to trade stocks, options, ETFs and more with low costs. 

Moomoo is a subsidiary of Futu Holdings Limited, which is a Nasdaq-listed company with the ticker FUTU. It is regulated by FINRA and the SEC, offering investor protection of up to $500k via the SIPC (Securities Investor Protection Corporation.)

Although most free trading platforms and apps have a primary focus on US securities and crypto, Moomoo provides low-cost trading technology to access other emerging markets. In addition to trading on the US markets, you can also make low-cost trades on the Hong Kong and Chinese stock exchanges. This has the potential to open up your trading to a world of opportunities, particularly if you are interested in trading outside the US. 

The Moomoo platform is available as an online interface or mobile app, which allows you to make free trades, and access a customizable platform and advanced tools. You can download the app to your iOS or Android device or use the desktop version on your PC or Mac. You can sync your alerts, notifications and customized setups across all of your devices. 

Moomoo Platform Features

Although Moomoo is a low-cost platform, it does have some innovative features which will appeal to traders of all experience levels. These include:

Advanced Charting: 

The Moomoo charting system is designed to offer all of the tools that you’d expect in a robust trading platform. There is a customizable dashboard that has multi-monitor views, 30 plus drawing tools, 60 plus indicators, which can be overlaid on your charts and a facility to create your own customized indicators. 

Although the charting may not be as advanced as some platforms, it is simple and flexible to suit beginners and intermediate investors. More advanced traders may find the charting a little lacking, but are likely to appreciate the customization. 

The Moomoo charting tools are available on the mobile app and desktop app, and you can sync your devices. This makes it easier to manage your trades without needing to be tied to your desk. With either interface, the charting is very responsive and intuitive to use. 

Stock Screener:

The stock screener on the Moomoo platform makes it easy to quickly sort and find ETFs and stocks. You can filter the list of available securities by a number of criteria including:

• PE Ratio

• Market Cap

• Net profit

• Gross margin

• Operating income

• Relative Strength Index

• Moving average

• MACD

This allows you to quickly filter the list to specific assets which fit your investment strategy criteria. There are also multiple custom views. Additionally, despite the fact that the platform only allows trading in sticks, options, ETFs and futures, it is also possible to view other securities 

Well-Designed Order Form:

Moomoo has a well-designed order form with a variety of order types. In addition to the standard limit and market orders, you can use

• Stop limit orders

• Market if touched orders

• Trailing stop orders

• Limit if touched orders

• Trailing stop limit orders

These advanced order types allow more control over your trading, particularly if you’re dealing with an extremely volatile market. 

Level II Data:

Although many platforms offer access to Level II market data, it is normally an add-on or included in a subscription tier. However, Moomoo offers access to this data for all its brokerage account holders at no charge. 

Level II data can provide greater insight into price books for given securities including bid/ask depth and pending orders. This information is crucial if you’re an active trader searching for the ideal entry and exit points for trades. 

Earnings Hub:

The Moomoo Earnings Hub is a great feature that can be a time saver for traders. It provides you with a quick view of how companies are running.  You can also access earnings reports during the earnings season when publicly traded companies release the recent quarter’s financial information. 

Within the hub, you can access the earning interpretations for companies, upcoming earnings schedules and more. You can also set up alerts for target companies, saving you masses of internet search time. 

Community Features:

One of the unique features of Moomoo is that it showcases community portfolios. You can browse trade activity and performance of fellow Moomoo users. Each of the users is ranked using a daily profit and loss percentage. You can also view all portfolio holdings by sector and market.

There is also a community chatroom, which allows you to discuss ideas and trading strategies with other platform users. There is even a dedicated chat feed for each ETF or stock on the Moomoo platform, so you can join conversations about specific assets.

These are great features for newbies who want to gain insight from more experienced traders or even intermediate users who are considering implementing more sophisticated strategies. 

Paper Trading:

Whether you’re new to trading or want to experiment with different strategies, you are unlikely to want to risk your own money and this is where paper trading can help.

Moomoo offers paper trading portfolios with one million dollars of “fake money” to use as a learning resource. You can place trades and familiarize yourself with the platform tools, trying out new strategies with no risk to your own investment fund. 

Unfortunately, the paper trading platform is not an exact duplicate of the main platform. There are no community tools, stock screener or access to live news feeds. There is also no charting, which can be frustrating. However, if you want to experiment without any risk, this is a great feature. 

User Experience

One of the best aspects of the user experience with the Moomoo platform is that you can sync your accounts across multiple devices and platforms. Whether you’re using a Mac or Windows PC, iOS or Android device, you can sync your settings and customize alerts.

This means that you can manage your trades without needing to be tied to your desk. If you’re on the go and anything changes on your watch list, you can receive an immediate alert and make your adjustments using your smartphone. 

This advanced trading platform is not only user-friendly, but also highly customizable. You can set up personalized alerts for stock movements, important market events and more. This allows you to automate much of your data searching, so you can receive an alert to let you know when you should make a trade according to your specific parameters. You can also sort stocks by fundamental analysis, technical factors or market factors. 

You can also use the Moomoo “strategy selection” feature to get real-time trading ideas that are based on the current market. You can speak to other Moomoo users via the community features or explore the detailed fundamental data and advanced charting.

Whether you’re new to trading or have some experience, you can use the 38 drawing tools, 60+ technical indicators and analyses to assist your trades. 

Pricing and Fees

Moomoo does not charge any commission for trades of stocks, and ETFs through its mobile or online platforms. You’ll not incur inactivity fees, minimum deposit requirements or platform fees, but you may still come across some fees that will impact your trades. These include:

• Options contracts: $0.65 per contract

• ACH or returned check fee: $5 for the first deposit, $10 per subsequent deposits

• Domestic wire transfers: $10 for incoming and $20 for outgoing

• International wire transfers: $10 for incoming and $25 for outgoing

• Paper statements: $3

• Assisted phone trades: $10

• Hong Kong stock exchange trades: 0.03% trading fee and HK$15 per trade. At the current exchange rates, this is approximately $2 per trade.

• A Shares market trades: 15CNH plus 0.03% trading fee. This works out at approximately $2 plus the percentage per trade. 

• Margin: If you want to trade on margin, which is a more advanced strategy, the rates are approximately 6.8% APR for US and Hong Kong markets and approximately 9% for the Chinese stock market.

Is Moomoo Legit?

Although Moomoo is not as well established as some online brokerages, it does have all the proper registrations with the major US regulatory entities. Users can also benefit from bank level encryption and accounts are protected with multi-factor authentication. 

Moomoo is not only a legit stock trading platform but also has a solid reputation within the industry. The company has decent customer support, with live chat offering fast response times 24/7 if you have any issues or queries about your account. 

Moomoo Pros and Cons

As with any platform or financial product, there are both pros and cons associated with Moomoo. These include:

The Pros:

• Commission-free trading: You’ll not incur a commission when trading stocks and ETFs

• Highly customizable platform: The Moomoo platform is both highly customizable and advanced, making it well-suited to traders of all experience levels.

• Advanced research: The Moomoo platform also has some excellent research tools including access to Level II market data.

• Paper trading: You can practice strategies and learn more about the platform features without risking real money.

The Cons:

• Limited account types and products: Although Moomoo does provide access to Chinese and Hong Kong markets, there are no bonds, crypto, mutual funds or forex. Additionally, there are only taxable accounts, so you cannot open an IRA. 

• No 24/7 support with all channels: The live chat is available 24/7, but if you contact Moomoo via email or phone, you’ll only receive an answer during trading hours. However, there are video tutorials and a comprehensive FAQ page on the site. 

• High margin rates: While most platforms charge for trading on margin, Moomoo’s rates are a little on the high side. So, if you are an advanced trader looking for a margin account, you may find other platforms are more competitive. 

• Newbies may feel overwhelmed: With such sophisticated tools and the customizable features, newbie investors may feel a little overwhelmed. Even the more experienced investor will face a learning curve, needing some time to become familiar with all the tools and features. However, there are educational resources to help you to navigate the platform. 

Summary

Moomoo is a well-regarded platform that combines low fees and access to Chinese and Hong Kong stocks. If you’re an active trader who is looking to trade stocks, options, and ETFs or an advanced trader looking for sophisticated trading tools, Moomoo is likely to appeal to you. There are no minimum deposit requirements and you’ll get free access to Level II market data. 

However, if you’re new to investing, you may find the Moomoo platform a little daunting. Although the platform is easy to use, it is packed with features and tools that will take some time to fully understand. Additionally, although access to international markets is a bonus, you need to think about whether this is of interest to you. You’ll need to understand the governance structures and regulations in the markets, so you won’t want to jump in unprepared.

All in all, Moomoo is a decent option, with low fees and costs, but be prepared to spend a little time exploring all of the learning resources to fully leverage the platform.