UBS e-banking Trading
UBS
Overall Rating
Annual cost (ETF investor)
CHF 399
ETF CHF 5k on SIX
CHF 45
FX fee
n/a
Custody fee
0.35% a year + VAT
Our take on UBS e-banking Trading
You're probably paying UBS about CHF 399 a year for an ETF portfolio. Here's what moving would save.
UBS e-banking trading ranks #10 among 10 brokers. It's in our table as the big-bank benchmark, and the numbers show why: about CHF 399 a year for our ETF investor, versus CHF 46 at Saxo and CHF 20 at Interactive Brokers. It suits existing UBS clients who value full service over cost.
What are you paying UBS for?
Mostly custody. UBS charges 0.35% a year plus VAT on your portfolio, CHF 189.18 on CHF 50,000. Then come commissions: 1.2% on Swiss trades under CHF 25,000, reduced by a 25% e-banking discount, with an online minimum of CHF 40. Four CHF 5,000 ETF buys cost CHF 180. Add CHF 30 stamp duty and you reach CHF 399.
For an active profile the gap gets absurd: about CHF 5,749 a year at UBS versus CHF 149 at IBKR. Even our starter, with CHF 10,000 and twelve CHF 500 buys, pays about CHF 527, because every small order hits the CHF 40 minimum. That's 8% of each CHF 500 purchase, gone before the market moves.
What Actually Stands Out
Convenience is the one thing UBS sells well. Your portfolio sits next to your UBS account, you get share register entry for Swiss stocks, and the range covers 29 markets with bonds, funds, options and CFDs. If your adviser, mortgage and pension are all at UBS, having your trading there too is genuinely simpler.
Safety isn't the issue either: UBS is a FINMA-licensed bank, and cash is covered by esisuisse up to CHF 100,000. You also get an eTax statement, for a fee. Foreign brokers don't issue one, so their clients look up tax values in the federal ICTax course list themselves. UBS saves you that work, at a price.
What Most Reviews Miss
UBS doesn't publish its currency conversion fee in the sources we checked, so we can't tell you what a USD purchase really costs. That's a problem in itself: Saxo shows 0.25% and IBKR 0.002%. Ask UBS for the rate before buying foreign securities, because on a large purchase it can outweigh the commission.
Moving is easier than most UBS clients think. Open the new account first, ask the new broker for a transfer-in form and list your positions. PostFinance, for example, covers transfer-in costs up to CHF 800. We don't have a published UBS transfer-out fee per position, so ask for it before you start.
The Bottom Line
If you're at UBS out of habit, moving an ETF portfolio to Saxo saves about CHF 353 a year on our ETF investor profile, with the same Swiss banking safety and a free eTax statement. Our Saxo Bank review walks through what you'd get instead.
Verdict: A solid bank but the most expensive broker we rank; stay only if full-service convenience is worth hundreds of francs a year to you.
Pros
- Everything at one bank alongside your UBS accounts
- Share register entry for Swiss stocks
- 29 markets with bonds, funds, options and CFDs
- FINMA bank with esisuisse cover up to CHF 100,000
Cons
- 0.35% custody fee plus VAT every year
- CHF 40 online minimum per Swiss trade
- eTax statement from CHF 100
- FX fee not published
Broker Details
At a Glance
- FINMA-licensed bank, esisuisse protection
- ETF savings plan
- Access to 29 exchanges
- CHF IBAN
What does it cost you per year?
What does it cost you per year?
Everything UBS e-banking Trading charges in a year for our three investor profiles: custody fees incl. VAT, commissions, Swiss stamp duty and currency conversion.
Starter · CHF 10,000 portfolio, 12 ETF buys of CHF 500 a year
ETF investor · CHF 50,000 portfolio, 4 ETF buys of CHF 5,000 a year
Active · CHF 200,000 portfolio, 24 Swiss and 12 US trades a year
Same profiles as the ranking. USD/CHF 0.80, EUR/CHF 0.94.
Price list
Price list
Swiss stock CHF 1,000 on SIX
Swiss stock CHF 5,000 on SIX
Swiss stock CHF 10,000 on SIX
ETF CHF 5k on SIX
US stock USD 1,000
US stock USD 5k
FX fee
Custody fee
Transfer out, per position
Minimum deposit
Commissions only, without stamp duty and currency conversion. Source: the broker's published price list.
Safety check
Safety check
You contract with UBS, a FINMA-licensed Swiss bank, so your cash is protected by esisuisse up to CHF 100,000 and your securities are held as segregated client assets.
Safety level
FINMA-licensed bank
Cash protected by esisuisse (CHF 100,000)
Securities held separately from the broker's assets
Securities in custody belong to you and are returned if the broker fails. Cash is only protected up to the deposit scheme limit.
Swiss tax check
Swiss tax check
eTax statement
Swiss stamp duty
Swiss share register entry
US dividends: 15% withheld at source with a W-8BEN form, claimable as a credit with the DA-1 form in your Swiss tax return.
Products and features
Products and features
Exchanges
Savings plan
Fractional shares
CHF IBAN
Multi-currency account
Bonds
Funds
Options and futures
Crypto
Mobile app
Web platform
Demo account
Compare to Similar Brokers
| UBS e-banking Trading | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rating | 3.3 / 5 | 4.4 / 5 | 3.9 / 5 | 3.6 / 5 |
| Annual cost (ETF investor) | CHF 399 | CHF 20 | CHF 156 | CHF 152 |
| ETF CHF 5k on SIX | CHF 45 | CHF 5 | CHF 9.85 | CHF 9 |
| FX fee | n/a | 0.002% | 0.95% | 0.5% |
| Safety level | FINMA bank, esisuisse | EU/UK regulated | FINMA bank, esisuisse | FINMA bank, esisuisse |
Frequently asked questions
- How much is the UBS tax statement for my portfolio?
- CHF 100 if you hold up to five positions, CHF 250 above that. A diversified portfolio of ten stocks therefore pays CHF 250 a year just for the statement, while Saxo and neon issue theirs for free.
- Why is my UBS custody fee higher than 0.35%?
- Because securities held with third-party custodians cost an extra 0.2% a year, on top of the 0.35% plus VAT. On CHF 50,000 held that way, the surcharge alone is CHF 100. Ask UBS which of your positions are in third-party custody.
- What's the minimum commission for a UBS online trade abroad?
- CHF 60. International trades start at 1.9% under CHF 25,000, minus the 25% e-banking discount, with a CHF 60 online minimum. A USD 1,000 purchase of a US stock therefore costs USD 75 in commission, 7.5% of the order.
- Does UBS offer an ETF savings plan?
- UBS offers savings plans, but they're fund-based, not a plan on any ETF you pick. If you want to automate monthly ETF purchases, Saxo's AutoInvest or neon's 0% savings-plan ETFs are closer to what you're after.
How We Rated This Broker
51.5 points out of 100, shown as 3.3 out of 5.
Ratings are updated monthly based on the latest available data. All brokers are evaluated using the same methodology. Deals, promo codes and commissions never change the score: every rank comes from published fees and verifiable features.
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