The Dubai-based branch of online trading platform XTB has announced the launch of fractional shares trading for investors in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). This is an extension of the fractional shares offering to more countries following their introduction earlier this year.
XTB Launches Fractional Shares Trading in the UAE
XTB fractional shares represent genuine ownership and entitle investors to proportional dividend payments . The minimum transaction value is EUR 10. There are no commissions for fractional share transactions within a monthly limit of EUR 100,000.
According to the CEO of XTB of MENA, Achraf Drid, fractional shares remove barriers that prevent some customers in the Middle East from investing in stocks. He stated that XTB aims to "foster an equity culture where private investors, irrespective of their portfolio size, can partake in the performance of companies they believe hold significant potential."
Previously, certain high-priced shares were inaccessible to some investors in the UAE due to the high per-share price. For example, Berkshire Hathaway Class A shares are currently trading at over $542,500 per share. With fractional shares, investors can now invest in these companies at a fraction of the full share price.
According to the official press release, the launch aligns with the company's goals of promoting greater financial inclusion and "facilitating accessible and diversified participation in the capital markets."
XTB MENA began its operations in October 2021, expanding its offerings from basic FX/CFD instruments to cryptocurrencies , and, in 2023, to stocks as well.
XTB Focuses on Developing New Products
The introduction of fractional shares in the UAE is a response to the popularity of this solution in other parts of the world. Following its debut in Romania at the beginning of the year and subsequent implementation in Spain and Poland, XTB introduced fractional trading in the United Kingdom.
Meanwhile, the company, aiming to attract new clients continuously, decided to develop passive products. The first step was the September launch of ETF-based "Investment Plans," designed to facilitate long-term investing.
The latest addition to the portfolio is interest on idle client deposits, which the company announced in early November.
These new products have already begun to impact the popularity of the publicly traded broker's offerings. As Finance Magnates reported, in November, XTB surpassed 200,000 users in Poland with a brokerage account for trading on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. This made XTB the third-largest brokerage firm in its home country and increased its total global client count to nearly 850,000.
