# Sharewatch problems/confusion



## CGG

This is my first posting on AAM. I feel compelled to warn people about the appalling service provided by Sharewatch. On October 6 I agreed to sell my vodafone shares using the Sharewatch telephone service. This service is advertised by Sharewatch as an easy method of carrying out small trades, but it is anything but. I finally received a cheque from them on Nov 22 after numerous calls to unhelpful people in Scotland. Although it is supposed to be an Irish company according to its website, you will only get to speak to people in a scottish office. Sharewatch is frequently listed in the business section of newspapers as the cheapest sharedealing service, but I would strongly advise against using their services. I would be very interested to hear if others have had similar experiences with them.

*Moderator note: Sharewatch have posted an entirely reasonable explanation below*.


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## efm

*Re: Sharewatch- warning*

Did Sharewatch give any specific reasons for the delay in issuing your cheque? Were your shares sold correctly ? ie at the correct price? Did you complete all the AML documentation completely and in a timely fashion?

If you have a problem with the service of a stockbroker in Ireland your first step is to write a letter to their Compliance officer outlining your displeasure and reason for it - if you are not satisfied with the response you can then write to the ISE who will investigate and can order the broker to compensate you if it feels it is warranted.

Actually- just looked at the website and it states that "All Sharewatch Trading deals will be executed, cleared and administered by Direct Sharedeal Limited, a Member of The London Stock Exchange and regulated by the Financial Services Authority (FSA)." 

So, Sharewatch is an Irish Multi Agency Intermediary and has an agreement for equity trading to be completed through Direct Sharedeal Ltd - hence the Scottish accents! Personally I wouldn't have a problem with the non Irishness of the company if they are providing a decent service at a competitive price.  The above comment about Compliance Officers and the Stock Exchange holds for UK companies as well as Irish companies - one can also complain to the FSA about the service of a regulated entity (ie Direct Sharedeal)


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## DirtyH2O

*Re: Sharewatch- warning*

I'm leaving them - only have one small holding left now and will sell it in the New Year - had a number of cheque problems, they gave me a new password over the phone without a security cheque, I don't care about ISEQ shares anyway but I'll be glad when I am gone.

Use a Eurozone broker instead - it's all merging and CMcC is introducing liberated market in the next few years. I use InteractiveBrokers now - free online transfers, good security system and 0.1% commission. With interest and they lend at 1.5% above market for leveraged purchases - good for Yen transactions. Sharewatch made me uneasy, although DirectSharedeal are the agents for Vodafone small shareholder sales so can't be about to collapse.
BankOfAmerica have introduced a zero commission trading account as well.


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## MfS

*Re: Sharewatch- warning*

I am with sharewatch as well - how do InteractiveBrokers keep your holdings is it a Crest PMA


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## cyberbunny

*Re: Sharewatch- warning*

Same experience here a while back...timely execution of the trade but delay in receiving the funds...guess if they (brokers) don't catch you one way (commission) they'll catch you another (interest on funds held)...


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## sharewatch

*Re: Sharewatch- warning*

Happy New Year to all on AAB. My name is Peter Byrne, Managing Director of Sharewatch.

The negative threads on AAB were brought to my attention. As these allegations are so serious and so far from our standard procedure I will personally investigate them.

My first suggestion is to 'CGG' - would you kindly send me all the details of your Small Trader transaction including approx time and date of phone calls to our office. You can choose to send these by Private Message, Email or on this Forum. As soon as I get these we will get the recorded tapes, listen to your conversations and reply to you. 

I absolutely assure you this is not the normal time frame and our feedback has always been very positive. The normal time frame of issuing a cheque is T10 (10 days) after receiving FULLY completed documentation. Please also note that the majority of our trading team which you found unhelpful are all former market makers i.e. very experienced.

Our Small Trader service is an easy way to carry out Small Trades and is not designed for regular traders. It is designed for people who wish to trade a small amount of shares (to max €15k) generally 'once-off' either left to them, a gift, bonus from employer or from an IPO they got shares from. 

It is a service provided for people who do not have a stock broking account and do not want to go through the process of opening one. Getting a certified copy of your driving licence/passport, filling out registration forms, Crest forms etc is far less inconvenient than one phone call to say 'I want to sell X amount of shares please send documents'.

Some of you will know me and know this service was set up to assist people who wanted to sell a small amount of shares. Prior to the launch of SW and the Small Trader service people found it virtually impossible to sell such amounts and ended up putting their small amount of shares back in the drawer. 

Finally, if I can be of help to anybody else or if you have any suggestions please email me via Profile on this site. 

Happy New Year,
peter


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## sharewatch

*Re: Sharewatch- warning*

Forgot to thank EFM for asking the all important questions. As EFM has implied we need all the correct documentation in place otherwise we cannot proceed with ANY transaction. Thanks EFM.

Another heads-up is for people selling shares (regular share account). If you want a cheque for them you need to make this clear to the Broker otherwise your account will be credited for the amount by default. Giving instructions such as "I want to sell all my shares" does not mean a cheque will be sent out to you automatically - it simply means your account will be credited for the amount of the sold shares.

If Cyberbunny and DirtyH20 would like to contact me (by email) I follow up here as well. I visited one of Cyberbunnys previous treads and believe our phone recordings can assist here. Needless to say I want to resolve everything whether we are right or wrong. 

Hope to hear from you soon.
Happy New Year,
peter


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## eggerb

*Re: Sharewatch- warning*



DirtyH2O said:


> ... they gave me a new password over the phone without a security check...


 
I am impressed to see Peter Byrne of Sharewatch respond to some of the Sharewatch concerns raised here. Initially, I had some teething problems but, in the main, have had them resolved. I was disappointed to hear that they no longer trade US shares but I've accepted this.

My most serious complaint also raised above by dirtyh2o and also in this post is the practice of resetting passwords without any security checks. In today's world of financial fraud, this is grossly negligent.


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## sharewatch

*Re: Sharewatch- warning*

I have replied to the Private Message I received regarding Passwords today. Still have not received a reply from CGG. Here is an extract from the Private message I sent on passwords. Please contact me if there are any more queries.
--------------------------------------------------------------------

Regarding your query, our dealers ask all clients a selection of security questions (name, address and recent transaction) with the exception of a new client who is in the set up process. 

In this case when he/she are given the very first username and password they then will enter the site and get to the next page. Here they are forced immediately to reset the password (making them the only person to have it), fill in their personal details and activate the account. 

As soon as this is done and if the person forgets their password the will be challenged with the security questions. Our new upgrade in software will allow people to do this online. All our clients are forced to change their password on a very frequent basis.

I hope this explains your query. Some people think the forcing of password change maybe too strict but security is a priority.

Happy New Year,
peter

p.s. regarding US trading we will have a better offering very shortly. The US Company we were dealing with were forcing a €20 per month fee onto every account if they did not trade. In addition they wanted a minimum of €5000 in each account. We would not accept this because it would be against everything we stand for. We like to think we offer good value, better security and do not force the client in anyway whether they are big or small.


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## therave

*Re: Sharewatch- warning*

well all i can say is that fair play to Peter Byrne for taking up the querys,be the result to others liking or not, you wouldn't see the MD's of many other companies posting on here and trying to rectify the problems and keep people happy.....
this is  a great web site and can only be made better by this community challenging what they consider is wrong and having it corrected by going to the top in the offending organisations.
if more MD's would act like this then the financial sector could be vastly improved..
as i have said in other posts i have spoken to Peter in the past and knew once he saw this that he would have a reaction


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## ClubMan

*Re: Sharewatch- warning*

I agree. This is the latest in a not so long line of official representatives of finance related companies posting useful information in response to queries and, sometimes, complaints. And something to be welcomed.


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## Johnny1

*Re: Sharewatch- warning*

Thats the way to do business and get a few new customers while you're at it.


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## bos4

*Re: Sharewatch- warning*

It goes to show how helpful AAM is too, in many ways it has become part of the Irish financial world. I think it is great to see banks and businesses replying to real problems and queries on the pages. Keep it up!


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## sharewatch

*Re: Sharewatch- warning*

May I add to Clubman's note above - '_This is the latest in a not so long line of official representatives of finance related companies posting useful information in response to queries and, sometimes, complaints.' _

I am very happy to post information and be of help with any queries but could I just make a point about complaints and message boards. 

This thread 'Sharewatch - warning' was brought to my attention and the person suggested I contact AAB and get it removed because of the damage it could/was doing. If I were on the other side of the fence I certainly would have had second thoughts about SW. 

As of this morning there have been 1840 views of 'Sharewatch -warning' and we will never know how many people shied away from us. The reason I did not contact Brendan and ask him to remove it because I was certain there was a lot more to the allegations. I emailed, sent private messages and public postings to CGG and have not had a reply. I now have the info which I will gladly share with everybody in another post.

Clubman, we are very happy to assist this board with answers to queries giving people the full picture about our financial products. I hope other companies will do the same. I would like to suggest that if a person has a complaint (about any company) and would like to share it with the board they should give their personal and exact details of the complaint. If this is not done you will find people getting a temporary email address, joining the board and knocking other Companies which will not be helpful for this board.

Finally, if any members of this board are in Glasgow and would like to visit our offices we will be glad to show them the full process from start to finish.

Have a good weekend,
peter


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## sharewatch

*Re: Sharewatch- warning*

As promised here are the details of what happened. It was very important that we replied to the post which included the following allegations _- __'appalling service', 'unhelpful people in Scotland'__ and finishing with 'I would strongly advise against using their services'._ 

Vodafone shares were sold
The person tore the Share Cert and sent in the wrong part 
The person was contacted and made aware of this on the 16/17 by phone/letter and again on the 25th. 
On the 25th of October we contacted the person and explained we had no option but to close the transaction
The transaction was closed and debt recovery would follow
On the 14th of November all the correct information for the same transaction arrived
A new transaction started on the 14th - cheque sent after settlement period
The person received their cheque on the 22nd and SW got €50


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## kfpg

*Re: Sharewatch- warning*



sharewatch said:


> Regarding your query, our dealers ask all clients a selection of security questions (name, address and recent transaction)
> 
> All our clients are forced to change their password on a very frequent basis.


 

Sharewatch customer since mid 2005 -

Have never been asked more than my name in terms of security, NEVER asked my address, NEVER asked about a recent transaction and have NEVER been forced to change my password. I use the same password since the day my account was set-up.

This is obviously not good and contrary to what Sharewatch has posted.

I find the service adequate, my guess is that their IT is not the very best out there but there seem to have been some back office changes lately (screens still look the same). I have had to ring two or three times to get an enquiry actioned e.g. move money between accounts which is frustrating and finally it was dissapointing that they stopped US trading.

BUT !! overall I'm happy, it is a low cost provider and I can normally get access to my account easily even when travelling etc.


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## Cannon

*Re: Sharewatch- warning*

Last February I opened an account with Sharewatch and bought some US stock. Some months later I was informed not by Sharewatch but by this forum that SW would no longer trade in US stocks. I was dissappointed that it was more problamatic and more expensive to then sell those shares but more so that Sharewatch did not contact me directly. Rang the SW help line and was told that Sharewatch contacted their customers directly in writing. I am still waiting. May be it's just a communication thing but it would help to keep customers confident that this web based company is customer foccussed even if what they offer is a basic dealing service.


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## sharewatch

*Re: Sharewatch- warning*

Lakeview,

I think there maybe a few crossed wires here and you could be referring to another platform outside the subject in this thread. We were referring to UK/Irish online trading platform. I suspect you have a US Online Trading one.

Regarding the extracts
1. Passwords - we were talking about the UK & Irish online trading system. I absolutely assure people are asked to change their password on a frequent basis. I hope others can verify same.

2. Security questions - we were referring to what happens if you forget your password for UK/Irish trading. Prior to Xmas people had to phone for a new password. As you said you have never changed your password (US online trading changes made online?) you are not on that system and so you would never have been asked those questions.

Peter


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## kfpg

*Re: Sharewatch- warning*

I have a UK/ Irish account !!!  and have never changed my user name or password for online access.

I am asked only my user name code and my own name and address when phoning your dealers !

From my irish account I previously bought occasional US shares but of course can no longer hold or trade US any more.


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## SharewatchIT

*Re: Sharewatch- warning*

Good Afternoon. My name is Paul Hulatt, Head of IT for Sharewatch.

Peter has asked me to come on here and see if I can answer anyones technical queries regarding the online services we offer and any problems you may be experiencing.

I know one area where queries have been raised is that of passwords. Firstly, I'd like to assure everyone that it is a standard requirement of the online system for passwords to be changed every 3 months, if this is not happening for whatever reason please let me know by PM. When you are prompted to change passwords you need to specify both your current password and your new password in duplicate. The new password cannot be the same as the current password.

If in the event you forget your password we provide the facility to reset it without having to call the support desk. For this to be possible you need to have setup your security details and email address in your profile which is accessed by clicking on "Help & Support" --> "Change Profile". Once these are setup, simply click the "Forgot Password" link on the login screen and you will be guided through the process. 
*NB.* It is possible that, if you are running Popup Blocking software on your PC, the password reset window will not appear and you will need to allow popups for the directsharedeal.com domain.

Hopefully this answers the queries that have been raised so far.

I'd like to also add that if anyone has any suggestions for improvements or additions to the online system, please do get in touch with me, either on this thread or by PM.

Kind Regards


Paul


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## phoenix_n

*Re: Sharewatch- warning*

As a neutral observer, I think the heading of the thread should be now amended as Sharewatch has addressed the original posters grievance. That would certainly be fair and would encourage other 'flamed' parties to address any problems that posters here encounter.



sharewatch said:


> As promised here are the details of what happened. It was very important that we replied to the post which included the following allegations _- __'appalling service', 'unhelpful people in Scotland'__ and finishing with 'I would strongly advise against using their services'._
> 
> Vodafone shares were sold
> The person tore the Share Cert and sent in the wrong part
> The person was contacted and made aware of this on the 16/17 by phone/letter and again on the 25th.
> On the 25th of October we contacted the person and explained we had no option but to close the transaction
> The transaction was closed and debt recovery would follow
> On the 14th of November all the correct information for the same transaction arrived
> A new transaction started on the 14th - cheque sent after settlement period
> The person received their cheque on the 22nd and SW got €50


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## sharewatch

*Re: Sharewatch- warning*

Lakeview, sorry about this but there has to be some mix up somewhere and hopefully other members will back me up on this. 

Ever since the UK/Irish online trading system was launched clients who did not forget their password were forced to change it every three months when logging in to the trading site. 

Since Christmas clients no longer need to call our office if they forgot it. They now click 'Forgot Password' and answer the security questions, two about personal details and one question-and-answer they provided themselves. 

To back this up I asked our Head of IT who designed the platform to register with AAB and make himself available for any Tech queries. Please also send him any suggestions you may to improve the platform.

2. Not quite sure about your second query. As mentioned our dealers ask a selection of security questions (normally three). You said you were asked your Client Reference Number, Name and Address.

Finally with regards to US trading we did change our third party because they were insisting on introducing an additional $20 per month fee and every client would need to have a min of 5k in their account - not on!. This type of pricing is not what Sharewatch is about and we pulled the plug. I can imagine this board if we had agreed to these charges. Instead we have agreed terms with Cheuvreux, an investment firm which is a subsidiary of Calyon and a member of the Crédit Agricole SA group. This will be live shortly.

peter



peter


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## therave

Wow.... now how many other sompanies have not only come on to this board and ones like but have made their IT head available..
as Phoenix says above it's time to change the thread name to something more rational and encouraging as i think Peter adn co are doing their very best to sort out the issues and going above and beyond the call of duty


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## Ravima

I have used sharewatch for many years and am satisfied with the level of service. for a small investor, the fees are very reasonable, compared to the local brokers. 

I have never had a problem with cheques or payments.

I find it handy that you can do the transaction online of if on the move and not technologically minded, by phone.


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## sharewatch

Thanks to Ravima, Phoenix_n and therave for positive postings. Glad to see the Heading changed and like Phoenix_n I hope this episode will encourage other companies to address problems that posters on AAB encounter. 

We have a Seminar in Cork on Tuesday (all welcome) and even though its outside the agenda I would be happy to sit down with anyone to demo the online trading system and show how the password system works. 

Enjoy the weekend,
peter


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## sherib

> Sunday Independent
> [FONT=Arial, Verdana, Arial]*MAKE ME RICHERCompiled by NICK WEBB SHARE DEALING*[/FONT]
> Buy €10,000 shares in the mobile phone seller. Online share dealing firms are much cheaper than the barmy commissions charged by traditional stockbrokers.
> BEST sharewatch.com €30
> AVOID Campbell O'Connor €170.
> Saving €140


Is this correct?


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## RainyDay

sherib said:


> Is this correct?



Based on the [broken link removed], I reckon they would charge €80 for a €10k transaction, not the €170 quoted by the Sindo


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## sherib

Thanks for that *RainyDay. *If I were to invest €2,000 in five shares in a single transaction, would that count as five transactions (as I imagine it would) and in that case would there be much difference between Sharewatch and Campbell O'Connor? I would lean towards C.O'C but not if the transaction costs were much higher in one than the other.


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## RainyDay

sherib said:


> If I were to invest €2,000 in five shares in a single transaction, would that count as five transactions


Yes - it would.



sherib said:


> and in that case would there be much difference between Sharewatch and Campbell O'Connor?


Are you asking me to do the sums for you? Come on, get out the calculator - you can do that yourself.


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## sherib

> Originally Posted by *RainyDay *
> Are you asking me to do the sums for you?


No, I'm not. I don't know what Sharewatch charges for a transaction and I merely asked if there would be much of a difference between the two costs especially in view of the Sunday Independent article.


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## RainyDay

sherib said:


> No, I'm not. I don't know what Sharewatch charges for a transaction and I merely asked if there would be much of a difference between the two costs especially in view of the Sunday Independent article.



Have you checked out their website (like I did for Camocon)?


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## Lemurz

Just to add my personal experience re Sharewatch.

Moved to SW from Fexco as they became too expensive.

On the positive side:
- Low charges
- Helpful employees / phone support

On the negative side:
- Password change requests are too frequent, requiring regular phone support 
- online platform is poor compared to US brokers
- online trading quantites are too low, so always need to call a broker to buy/sell shares (& I'm not a big trader!)
- default account is GBP, not EUR.

Currently Considering moving to a new broker, as I find SW too troublesome.  Anyone found a better alternative at similar cost?


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## SharewatchIT

Hi Lemurz,

I'd like to see if I can help with any of the 'negatives' you are experiencing with the online system.



> - Password change requests are too frequent, requiring regular phone support


We require that passwords are changed every 3 months and this is a security feature which many of our clients value. There should be no requirement for phone support. If you are experiencing problems with the process please PM me.



> - online platform is poor compared to US brokers


I would be very interested to hear what you would like to see on the system as we are very interested in hearing clients views.



> - online trading quantites are too low, so always need to call a broker to buy/sell shares (& I'm not a big trader!)


I'm afraid this is out of our hands as the quantities are set by the Market Makers and change throughout the day.



> - default account is GBP, not EUR.


There is a change to the system planned for the next few months which will change this default behavior.

I hope that answers you queries but if you have any more, please let me know.


Paul


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## RainyDay

RainyDay said:


> Based on the [broken link removed], I reckon they would charge €80 for a €10k transaction, not the €170 quoted by the Sindo



Looks like the SIindo €170 figure refers to UK transactions involving nominee accounts, as mentioned in [broken link removed].


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## smiley

*Sharewatch Comments*



sharewatch said:


> p.s. regarding US trading we will have a better offering very shortly



Hi Peter....any news for us on the US dealing service yet??...thanks...


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## sherib

Not sure if this is the right place for this (maybe an IT problem) but here goes. I use the Sharewatch/Yahoo Finance site/link to check stock prices but for the past couple of weeks the Ryanair price is stuck at €12.35. Other prices seem to update OK. I've tried everything I know to correct this like deleting cookies and deleting temporary files but nothing seems to work. Here's the link I use - [broken link removed] Can anyone help please?


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## ClubMan

_Ryanair _did a 2:1 stock split on Friday 23rd Febuary 2007 (see here) and that looks like the last price for the original pre-split stock so perhaps the new stock is listed under some new ticker or else this system just hasn't caught up with the real world or something?


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## sherib

Thanks ClubMan - I know about the split since I dipped my toe in stockwater before that happened. It seems a long time for the catch up. I wonder are other people who use that site finding the same problem?


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## CupofTea

Still no news on US trading? What does 'very shortly' mean. Please update us.


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## sharewatch

Hi again. Very shortly means yesterday, yes it is available...at last I hear you say! Apologies for the delay but this was due to the complexity of setting up US trading and more importantly securing the right price point.

Details will be on the site shortly but just wanted to let you know asap. The service is Phone Based and will be open until the close of the US market. The commission is 0.4% min $50 per trade (€36.65 approx) for Execution Only and 0.75% min $50 for Advisory & Discretionary. 

If you visit The Financial Regulators website (link below) you will see two examples of Broker’s charges (€10k and €35k) for US Trades. The €10k example shows the various Brokers commissions as follows *€175 €126.95 €115 €205 €180 €99.84 €125 €165 €135 €135 €210* - Sharewatch's rate is *€40* applying the same FX rate for parity purposes. The second example shows the following Broker commissions for a €35k trade *€399.50 €252.81 €277.50 €462.50 €480 €187.34 €362.50 €545 €360 €385 €482.50* - Sharewatch's rate is *€140* applying the same FX rate.

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me. I can be emailed via this site.

peter

[broken link removed]


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## smiley

great to see. i would like to use the service asap.

How/Where are the shares held?


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## z108

I ve  dealt over the phone with sharewatch and share certs a few times. I 've had occasion to phone Scotland once or twice because my cheque was a bit late coming (over a week to 10 days later than expected I think looking back ) . The reason given was  that the buyer had delayed paying them which didnt really seem like a valid reason to me at the time because surely my deal was with sharewatch and not with any third party buyer? 
I sold Irish Life and Perm at around 22/23 around December/January and the buyer might have felt a little bit sick when they went down to 18/19 almost the next day.
But over all Im very happy with sharewatch and am not here to slam them at all and in fairness I thought the staff were courteous and pleasant  and the whole process of selling was quite easy and not a rip off.


Like the previous poster, I'd also like to know how are shares held if I buy ones which dont have share certs such as an ISEQ etf ? In this case do I need to open an account ?


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## efm

sign said:


> The reason given was that the buyer had delayed paying them which didnt really seem like a valid reason to me at the time because surely my deal was with sharewatch and not with any third party buyer?


 
Just to clarify a point here - when you are dealing with a stockbroker he/she is working as an agent for you not as the other side of a transaction (in some cases if a broker is dealing on his own book he will be the other side of a transaction but there are separate exchange rules around this). If there was a late settlement, as you seem to be implying, then there should have been an interest claim lodged against the delaying party.

If the broker was cross-selling on his own book, and not going to the exchange then it is possible that a buyer delayed settlement and once again an interest claim could have been lodged.

My guess is that the amounts involved were tiny and any interest claims minuscule and not worth the effort


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## efm

sign said:


> Like the previous poster, I'd also like to know how are shares held if I buy ones which dont have share certs such as an ISEQ etf ? In this case do I need to open an account ?


 
To answer second part - I belive your shareholding will be held on CREST (the settlement system) in an individual CREST account. This is for Irish, UK and US shares. If you elect not to have a CREST account for US shares then your holding will be held in a Nominee account in Merrill Lynch or at KAS Bnak, depending on the security traded.

BTW I have no connection with Sharewatch and got all the info from searching the Sharewatch site and the internet - anyone else could have done the same!


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## CupofTea

I called the Sharewatch office in London yesterday to buy some US shares and was told in no uncertain terms that I COULD NOT buy US shares yet. It's getting really annoying to keep putting money into my Sharewatch account and find I can't use it for what I intended. 

I was told by the Glasgow office in April that they usually charge £20 to send money back electronically (They waived the fee that time). It's not advertised that you can transfer money into Sharewatch electronically with no problem yet all their transfers back they want £20 - even though they have an account in Cork so transfers could be really cheap.


The infomation left on this site on 29th April directly contradicts my experience when I called London yesterday to buy US shares.

Peter, could you please update us with the current situation?


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## z108

> Just to clarify a point here - when you are dealing with a stockbroker he/she is working as an agent for you not as the other side of a transaction



Ok fair enough. I figured there was some kind of mechanism like this.
But I lacked certainty. Thanks for giving me certainty regarding the procedure.



efm said:


> If there was a late settlement, as you seem to be implying, then there should have been an interest claim lodged against the delaying party.




Im more than implying. I'm saying it was late for a fact but that obviously wasnt sharewatches fault. I didnt get my money for nearly a month but it didnt worry me at the time. I only needed to know that it was on its way.

Out of interest what kind of interest rate would I have been entitled to? Nobody told me about interest penalties. Usually its the other way around where you get told to hurry up and send your details in or risk a penalty.


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## efm

sign said:


> Out of interest what kind of interest rate would I have been entitled to? Nobody told me about interest penalties.


 
It's been a while but I think that the non-settling broker will be fined GBP£5 by CREST. If claiming interest I think the usual charge is LIBOR or EURBOR plus 100 basis points ie you're looking at somewhere around 5.1-5.3% per annum (which is about 0.000145% per day). For small private client deals interest claims are very rarely persued.

However, like I said it's been a while so I might be a bit off the mark here.


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## z108

so no credit card  style interest payments .. damn !!


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## CupofTea

I just had a bad experience with Sharewatch. The week before last I transferred a few thousand into my Sharewatch account. As usual I had to ring up since my bank can only send numbers in the reference field so the money sits in the suspense account. The back office person found the money quickly and said she'd put it onto my account straight away. She even had me hold on whilst she did some typing. Hours later the money still wasn't there and I bought some shares. It was only after I complained that they moved the money to my account.

I complained that they hadn't done what they said they were going to do and that it made my account go into the red before going positive again. One of the Directsharedeal people even sent my email to their financial director. I got no response at all to my complaints about their back office people not doing what promised to do. The only result of my complaint is that they charged me €60 for the 2007 annual fee which had not yet been levied.

Make of that what you will.

(Sharewatch or Sharedeal - calls are recorded, if you contact me I will give you the date and time for you to listen to the call records)


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## smiley

Are any of you having annoying problems now and again with Sharewatch aka direct share deal? like the following.

* getting requests for payments of shares you purchased even though the cash was in your account to make the purchase?
*them buying (or their computer system) saying you bought 2 lots of shares rather than just one set.
*converting euro into sterling in your account without your permission

The software and your account details sometimes dont match up with what they are looking at on their computer screens in Glasgow??

Its all quite bizarre.
If do dont watch your account very closely things can go amiss...like your cash!

All these glitches are very uncomforting...doesnt give one much confidence in what they are suppossed to be doing.

anybody else had these sort of issues???


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## efm

smiley said:


> Are any of you having annoying problems now and again with Sharewatch aka direct share deal? like the following.
> 
> * getting requests for payments of shares you purchased even though the cash was in your account to make the purchase?


 
Yup...I had that...and I was a first time buyer of shares with them so under their own rules I wasn't allowed to trade anyway without cleared funds up front!

To be honest it didn't bother me too much personally as I am not a regular investor / trader but it seems to me their front and back office systems aren't integrated / referencing each other correctly. What probably happened is that back office or front office used an incorrect account number and the link between the cash and trade was lost (that's my layman's guess anyway)


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## 8till8

I never get replies to emails, I asked them about receiving annual reports and div's but only got automated tracking response. 
Very poor show if they don't reply to registered users emails


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## smiley

efm said:


> but it seems to me their front and back office systems aren't integrated / referencing each other correctly



or to put it another way their right arm doesnt know what their left arm is doing!!

As regards the system too, you cant actually buy shares online unless the cash in your account. How could they possibly not understand this and then come looking for the cash which HAD TO BE IN YOUR ACCOUNT IN THE FIRST PLACE to buy the shares.

What are they actually putting in their tea? It must be very strong.

8till8...are you looking for the annual reports and divis etc for e.g. US shares??
Wonder how they handle this?

Quite quite bizarre all this.


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## Ravima

I had some minor difficulties recently. You may have Euro cash and bought in Sterling or Dollars. The money then has to be coverted. If you ask for the cash office, you will speak to some human being, rather than a machine and they will convert for you.

You cannot buy online without funds in the account, but once you build up a relationship, they will buy over phone for you eithout cash being in place. You than have a few days to make the payment. 

I have never eperienced the purchase of two sets of shares instead of one.

If I ever had a problem, I have emailed through the website or direct to one of the staff once I have their email and the problem is sorted out quickly. I do agree that the automated response is quite annoying, especially if the original query is never answered!

All in all, I am satisfied with the service. It is efficient and reasonably priced, plus you have the benefit of CREST rather than the usual NOMINEE holding facility.


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## joconnol

I have had a few administrative problems with Sharewatch and also  problems with incompetent staff. The one major problem I had was in February/March '09 when I sold some shares while out of the country (5 month work-placement). I was delayed in returning my share certificates and had received a number of phone calls requesting I submit them. I did not get the calls as I was out of the country. When I finally caught up with Sharewatch (about 3 weeks after the sale), they told me that because I hadn;t gotten in touch, they had used my money to buy the shares back - in my name, without my permission!!
I presume this is totally illegal, but did not make a stink because I was (and am) so far away.  Does anyone know what rights I have in this regard? I return home in July and would like to follow-up on this to the full extent of the law.


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## smiley

i would imagine it is perfectly legal. You failed to send them the share certs on time to prove you owned the shares.

It doesnt matter where you where. It was your responsibility to send them the cert.


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## fikelly

joconnol said:


> I have had a few administrative problems with Sharewatch and also problems with incompetent staff. The one major problem I had was in February/March '09 when I sold some shares while out of the country (5 month work-placement). I was delayed in returning my share certificates and had received a number of phone calls requesting I submit them. I did not get the calls as I was out of the country. When I finally caught up with Sharewatch (about 3 weeks after the sale), they told me that because I hadn;t gotten in touch, they had used my money to buy the shares back - in my name, without my permission!!
> I presume this is totally illegal, but did not make a stink because I was (and am) so far away. Does anyone know what rights I have in this regard? I return home in July and would like to follow-up on this to the full extent of the law.


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## fikelly

Hi,
I also have a problem with Sharewatch. They have sold double the amount of shares I had with them because of overlapping of phone and online trading . How can they sell shares for me which I do not own? Now if the price rises I lose money as in effect I have borrowed shares.


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## Ravima

how did you do a double trade? Did you do the sale inline and then phone up to do the same one? If so, then the problem is yours.


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## djustoe

id like to hear from the rep from Sharewatch, a reason why so many securities are never available for online trading?


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## gleesonger

I have had 2 problems with SW one of which has yet to be resolved:

29 April Transfer €900 to SW

On the 14th of May I set a limit for AIB such that the total of my account was transfered to the stocks, the trade went ahead and was my first ever trade with them (No notification recieved).So I now have roughly 1000 AIB shares and €0 in the ac.

25th May I transfered 1000 across to the a/c
1000 AIB shares and €1000 in the a/c

Now the fun begins:

4-Jun
I rang up SW to place a trade by phone because online trading was suspended due to the volatility of the market ( So i was told, I believe this unless told otherwise) while on the phone I asked to transfer all the money in my account to BOI (No security what so ever) .Broker: "You want to purchase €1900 worth of shares"......Pause "No I should have 1000 in AIB and 1000 in the account" Response "I'm sorry I have no record of any trades".......
One Hour later I get a call saying that yes I was correct and that there was a system glich. SYSTEM GLICH WITH MY MONEY!!!!!
Needless to say the trade went ahead so roughly the current stadings:

4-Jun
1000 AIB
500 BOI
€0 in the account

All good....Not So

Later that day 4-Jun I checked the online portolio valuation my status it tells me is

2000 AIB 
500 BOI
€-1000 in the ac.

So now I have an extra 1000 AIB and minus 1000 in the account!!!!!!
1:How the hell did this happen?
2:How is it possible for me to overdrawn I don't have a marginal account?
3:Whats really interesting is that I'm told that the Deal date of this extra trade is on the 14-May The same date as my original trade however it was never displayed on profolio table till the other day

I have not yet rang SW but will do today.I suspect another system glich.
If that is the case I'm astounded that such an incompetent team has been employed in SW to manage the database.

I am new to trading so I will remain open to the possibility that the latter issue is my own falut and if so I will amend this post to reflect truthfully what has occurred.

But the question still remains how could I overdraw on the account, why was I not in knowledge of the the second AIB trade until 3 weeks later, why did I not recieved notification by email of the online limit trade.

Thanks,
Ger.


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## gleesonger

djustoe said:


> id like to hear from the rep from Sharewatch, a reason why so many securities are never available for online trading?



Incase you didnt read my above rant, I was told by a SW phone broker that if the markets are too volatile online trading is ceased.A rough unofficial estimate of 3% shift in either direction was given as a figure, the reason I was told, was that restrictions were placed on them from a third party and not so their own doing.A pain as I prefer to trade with AIB,BOI whos volatilty has been close to 15% each day recently.


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## fikelly

I was going on holidays and checked online to see had a telephone sell trade from the previous day gone through. It wasn't showing so I assumed for some reason that it had been missed. I tried the same trade online and when it worked I was certain that the telephone trade of the previous day had not put through. Sharewatch now want me to buy back the shares but as they have risen substancially in price I wish to wait  in the hope they drop back to near the sell price. Any advice?


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## ned

I would refuse. If the telephone trade had been or was in line to be traded, the same shares should not have been available to sell online..their fault, not yours...then again they may have covered themselves in the small print...I have an account with these guys but am currently looking for an alternative..

best of luck


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## gleesonger

I assume if your broker attempts to sell something that you don't own they can recoup the original sum of these non-existent shares from your account as that money is not yours but the difference of the share price whether that be a loss or gain is theirs.As for covering themselves in the fine print it still has to be legal so possibly try and get hold of someone who would be well versed in the law regarding the issue and ask them.

So in your case I would take what money is mine and go, let them deal with costs of their mistakes.


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## gleesonger

The conclusion of my previous essay was yes there was another software glich!!!!!


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## Tigre

gleesonger said:


> I have had 2 problems with SW one of which has yet to be resolved:
> 
> 
> I have not yet rang SW but will do today.I suspect another system glich.
> If that is the case I'm astounded that such an incompetent team has been employed in SW to manage the database.
> 
> 
> Thanks,
> Ger.




Hi all,
I have been a cleint of sharewatch/directsharedeal since 2003. And am I, to put it mildly, FRUSTRATED......YES.... In my opinion, if anything, the service and professionalism has got considerably worse over that period. 
I have heard all the promises and excuses from the top people down as to the improvements they are making...unfortunately none of them appear to have been actioned in my 6 years experience with them or if they have, they have only served to make matters worse withstanding a couple of hopeful positvie moments in thet period.
Currently, I cannot see any online transactions or balances etc when I view my account online. They forwarded me a printout of my transactions which did not include any balances prior to or subsequent to the transaction so I cannot know where I stand. 
Dates listed for transactions are different to pritnoffs I had made mysellf from their online system when it was available. 
Items listed in them like dividends etc. are not included in the excel spreadshhet they sent me in the past few days. 
I have asked them sevral times  over the years to forward me the dividend stubs as they come as I need them for making my tax return. Again they dont do that until I contact them in a panic to finalise my tax returns.
I am currently in contact with them to get my account sorted and explained so hopefully that will be positive....fingers crossed that there wont be another system glitch!!
Regards.


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## tombob

I've had accounts with SW, Davy and NIB for 5 years, Made good profits up to 06, sold the lot then, a bit too early, Got back in again late 08, again a bit early, Hard to time the market, On the up again but afraid of another dip. 
With SW and Davy you can offer to buy/sell and get a quote in 10 seconds, with NIB you have to offer to buy/sell with a limit and wait and see, or buy/sell with no limit
SW were great up to last year, no more, wont return calls/emails, odd cash error, They have Lowest commission but I notice a few cents more per share when you buy and few cents less when you sell, not a lot but still. Info on their new site very limited.
The other two very good apart from cost, You Can trade online with NIB on most of the exchanges, with Davy only ISEQ, FTSE and maybe US but you have to use phone on rest of exchanges. Costly.
 Anyone know how much SW charge to transfer cash & share holdings to another broker.
I saw somewhere it was 20GBP per each holding, but they could up the cost as they wish.


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## tombob

I've had accounts with SW, Davy and NIB for 5 years, Made good profits up to 06, sold the lot then, a bit too early, Got back in again late 08, again a bit early, Hard to time the market, On the up again but afraid of another dip. 
With SW and Davy you can offer to buy/sell and get a quote in 10 seconds, with NIB you have to offer to buy/sell with a limit and wait and see, or buy/sell with no limit
SW were great up to last year, no more, wont return calls/emails, odd cash error, They have Lowest commission but I notice a few cents more per share when you buy and few cents less when you sell, not a lot but still. Info on their new site very limited.
The other two very good apart from cost, You Can trade online with NIB on most of the exchanges, with Davy only ISEQ, FTSE and maybe US but you have to use phone on rest of exchanges. Costly.
Anyone know how much SW charge to transfer cash & share holdings to another broker.
I saw somewhere it was 20GBP per each holding, but they could up the cost as they wish.


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## 8till8

I read on the sharewatch website that they are a private company, where does that leave the safety of money left in the cash account? (ie money waiting to be invested in shares)
Obviously each customer takes the risk that they will stay trading but does the regulator ensure the money is kept safe?


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## ardmara

Hi Paul,

Please tell me the contact for your compliance officer. I am now reaching the point where I am considering legal action against Sharewatch. You do not respond to my emails. My account is HEH 90001

Thank you

Hugh Hennessy


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