Trading Information FAQ
Why I cannot trade Russia-related securities in Online Equity Platform?
Our brokers, custodian banks and counterparties have started to impose restrictions and requirements on certain transactions to comply with sanctions/actions taken against Russian individuals and entities. As such, your trades that are processed by us via these brokers, custodian banks and counterparties may be impacted. Specifically, instructions relating to trades with a Russian nexus may not be processed or only processed partially. Settlement delays or failures may also occur. For more information, please contact your Relationship Manager. For clients of DBS Treasures, please contact our Treasures Hotline (852) 2961 2338.
Can I purchase virtual asset-related products through Online Equity Trading (e.g. virtual asset exchange-traded funds (VA ETFs))?
Yes, you can trade virtual asset-related products through Online Equity Trading, before trading virtual asset-related products, please acquire Virtual Asset Knowledge (VAK) and Derivatives Knowledge (DK).
What do I need to sign-up before I start trading with DBS Online Trading Platform?
DBS Online Equity Trading Platform allows you to trade in 7 markets – Hong Kong, Singapore, U.S., Canada, Japan, Australia and United Kingdom. In order to obtain real-time quote and information of the U.S. market on the trading platform, you are required to accept the Market Data Agreement for U.S. market before proceeding to trade.
You may review and accept the above Market Data Agreements during the first time accessing DBS Online Equity Trading Platform or visit “Account Management” page under “More” anytime after you have entered into DBS Online Equity Trading Platform.
Who is eligible for the U.S. Stock Trading Service?
Customers are eligible for trading U.S. Stocks if they are
- Non-U.S. persons.
- Able to provide a valid identification document such as a permanent Hong Kong Identity Card or passport.
What should I do if the DBS Online Trading Platform is not responding?
For DBS Private Bank and DBS Treasures Private Client customers, you may place orders via your Relationship Manager. For DBS Treasures customers, please call our DBS Treasures Securities Service Hotline at (852) 2290 8033.
What quotes are available through DBS Online Trading Platform?
You can obtain free real-time quotes on equities listed on the Hong Kong, Singapore, and U.S. markets. You can obtain free delayed quote on equities listed on the Canada, Japan, Australia and United Kingdom markets.
What are the trading hours of the markets available online?
Stock markets operate from Monday to Friday except for public holidays. You may refer to websites of exchanges for public holidays of respective markets. The market trading hours are as follows:
| Markets | Trading Hours (Local Time) | Trading Hours (HKT/SGT) |
|---|---|---|
| Hong Kong | 09:00 – 16:00 Pre-opening session: 09:00 – 09:30 Morning session: 09:30 – 12:00 Afternoon session: 13:00 – 16:00 Closing Auction Session: 16:00–16:08–10** |
09:00 – 16:00 Pre-opening session: 09:00 – 09:30 Morning session: 09:30 – 12:00 Afternoon session: 13:00 – 16:00 Closing Auction Session: 16:00–16:08–10** |
| Singapore | 09:00 – 17:00 Pre-opening session: 08:30 – 08:58-59** Morning session: 09:00 – 12:00 Mid-Day Break: 12:00 – 12:58-59*** Afternoon session: 13:00 – 17:00 Pre-close session: 17:00 – 17:04-05*** Non-Cancel: 17:04-05*** - 17:06 Trade At Close Session: 17:06 - 17:16 |
09:00 – 17:00 Pre-opening session: 08:30 – 08:58-59** Morning session: 09:00 – 12:00 Mid-Day Break: 12:00 – 12:58-59*** Afternoon session: 13:00 – 17:00 Pre-close session: 17:00 – 17:04-05*** Non-Cancel: 17:04-05*** - 17:06 Trade At Close Session: 17:06 - 17:16 |
| U.S. / Canada | 09:30 – 16:00 | 22:30 – 05:00 (Standard time) 21:30 – 04:00 (Daylight saving time) |
| Japan |
Continuous session: 09:00 – 11:30 12:30 – 15:30 |
Continuous session: 08:00 – 10:30 11:30 – 14:30 |
| Australia |
Continuous session: 10:00 – 16:00 |
Continuous session: 08:00 – 14:00 (Standard Time) 07:00 – 13:00 (Daylight Saving) |
| United Kingdom |
Continuous session: 08:00 – 16:30 |
Continuous session: 16:00 – 00:30 (Standard Time) 15:00 – 23:30 (Daylight Saving) |
*Hong Kong (16:00 to 16:08-10 / 12:00 to 12:08-10)
This phase will end randomly at any time from 16:08 to 16:10 hours (for normal day trading) or 12:08 to 12:10 hours (for half-day trading).
**Pre-Open Phase (08:30 to 08:58-59 hours)
Singapore (08:30 to 08:58-59)
This phase will end randomly at any time from 08:58 to 08:59 hours.
***Pre-Close Phase
Singapore (17:00 to 17:04-05 hours/12:30 to 12:34-35 hours)
This phase will end randomly at any time from 17:04 to 17:05 hours (for normal day trading) or 12:04 to 12:05 hours (for half-day trading).
The trading hours for the markets stated above are for reference only and subject to change. Please refer to websites of exchanges for updated trading hours.
Can I place trade during Pre-opening Session (POS) or Closing Auction Session (CAS) in Hong Kong Market?
Trading services in the Pre-opening Session and Closing Auction Session are provided as below
| Pre-opening Session | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time Range | Period | New Order Input | Amendment | Cancellation |
| 09:00 - 09:15 | Order Input Period |  |
|
|
| 09:15 - 09:20 | No-cancellation Period | |
 |
|
| 09:20 - 09:22 | Random Matching Period^ | |
|
|
| After matching - 09:30 | Blocking Period | |
|
|
^In the Random Matching Period, order matching randomly starts between 9:20 – 9:22, and upon start of order matching, input / amendment / cancellation of orders is not allowed.
Price Limits for POS
A two-stage price limit is applied to control the price of at-auction limit orders which are input during the POS.
| Applicable session | Scope of price limit |
|---|---|
| Order Input Period | ± 15% from previous closing price |
| No Cancellation Period Random Matching Period |
Within highest bid price and the lowest ask price recorded at the end of the Order Input Period at 9:15 |
| Closing Auction Session | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time Range | Period | New Order Input | Amendment | Cancellation |
| 16:00 - 16:01 | Reference Price Fixing Period | |
|
|
| 16:01 – 16:06 | Order Input Period | |
|
|
| 16:06 – 16:08 | No-Cancellation Period | |
|
|
| 16:08 – 16:10 | Random Closing Period* | |
|
|
*In the Random Closing Period, at-auction orders and at-auction limit orders can still be inputted until the market close randomly within the two-minute period.
Price Limits for CAS
A two-stage price limit is applied to control the price of limit orders which are either carried forward from CTS to CAS, or newly inputted during CAS.
| Applicable session | Scope of price limit |
|---|---|
| Order Input Period | ± 5% from Reference Price |
| No Cancellation Period Random Closing Period |
Within the lowest ask & highest bid at the end of Order Input Period as recorded at 16:06 |
Can I place trade during pre-closing session in Singapore Market?
| Time Range | Period | New Order Input | Amendment | Cancellation | Order Matching |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17:00 - 17:04-05** | Pre-close | |
|
|
|
| 17:04-05** - 17:06 | Non-cancel | |
|
|
All unmatched orders will be discarded. |
| 17:06 - 17:16 | Trade At Close | |
|
|
Order Matching allowed only at closing auction price. |
Can I trade my overseas securities during Hong Kong public holidays?
Trading will be available if overseas stock markets are open. You can place your orders during Hong Kong public holidays.
What types of orders can I submit?
| Types of Orders | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Markets | Market Order | Limit Order | At-Auction Limit Order | Enhanced Limit Order | All Or None | Good for day | Order Duration (max 30 calendar days) |
|
| Hong Kong | |
|
|
|
(max 10 calendar days) |
|||
| Singapore | # |
|
|
|
||||
| U.S. | |
|
|
|
|
|||
| Canada | |
|
|
|
||||
| Japan | |
|
|
|||||
| Australia | |
|
|
|||||
| United Kingdom | |
|
|
|||||
# The Market Order type can only be entered during normal trading hours, from 09:00 - 17:00 HK time
What is the difference between Market Order, Limit Order, At-Auction Limit Order and Enhanced Limit Order in Hong Kong Market?
An MO is an order to buy or sell stocks at the prevailing market price immediately without setting a limit price. This order will be placed to the market by matching it up to the 10th queue at 9 spreads away at the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong at the time when the MO is processed. Any unfilled quantity of your MO would be cancelled immediately.
The filled price may deviate considerably from the expected price at time of placing such order. The order processing time required will depend on the prevailing market situation and the number of orders that need to be processed. The possible delay in order processing could incur great loss, and you are advised to enquire the order status after placing the order.
For Hong Kong market, a MO will be sent to the market in the form of Special Limit Order during continuous trading session. The order price will be set as the prevailing best bid price (for sell orders) / ask price (for buy orders) for matching at the time of order submission by you. Any unfilled quantity of the order after matching will be cancelled immediately. Under a fluctuating market, the order may be rejected or unfilled if (but without limitation to) the prevailing best bid price goes down (for sell orders) / ask price goes up (for buy orders) before the order is sent to the exchange successfully leading to unmatched orders and hence immediate order cancelation (due to feature of Special Limit Order).
Limit Order (LO):When you place a LO, you are stating the price at which you wish to buy or sell a stock. If that price is not met, your order will not be filled. A LO guarantees a price but does not guarantee an execution. Please note that LO is not provided for Hong Kong trading on our platform.
At-auction Limit Order (ALO):An ALO is a Limit Order that can be input during Pre-Opening Session or Closing Auction Session.
For ALO input during Pre-Opening Session - after order matching, unfilled ALO in the pre-opening session with input price not deviating nine times or more from the prevailing nominal price will be converted to Limit Orders (LO) at the input price and carried forward to the continuous trading session.
For ALO input during Closing Auction Session – after order matching, unfilled ALO would be discarded and would not be carried forward to the next business day.
More information about ALO is available on the website of Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX).
Enhanced Limit Order (ELO):An ELO is similar to a Limit Order, except that it allows matching of up to 10 price queues (i.e. the best price queue and up to the 10th queue at 9 spreads away) at one time. After order matching, unfilled ELO will be converted into a Limit Order (LO) and placed in the price queue at the order input price.
More information about ELO is available on the Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX) website
What is an 'All Or None' (AON) order?
'AON' is a type of restricted order where the entire order must be filled at one time or nothing will be filled at all. If you do not specify your order as 'All Or None' when placing a limit order, there is a possibility that your order will be filled partially. Full commission fees and charges apply for each partial fill, except those transacted within the same business day. Please note that AON feature will only be available for U.S. market and if the quantity is equal or over 100 units.
What is Good for Day order?
A Good for Day order is a limit order good for that business day only. If the order is not filled by the end of the trading day, the order will expire. A Good for Day order placed after the market is closed is good for the next business day, unless it is placed specifically for after-hours trading.
What is Good till Date order?
A Good till Date order is an instruction good for up to next 30 calendar days after the order is placed. The order will be cancelled on the morning following the expiration date being set. When you cancel and replace a good for 30 days order, the order will be given a new 30 calendar days expiration period. Good till Date order for Hong Kong market allows 10 calendar days only.
For stocks listed in The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong (the “SEHK”), orders within the spreads as prescribed by the Bank from time to time of the relevant current market bid/offer prices will be sent to SEHK for queuing; for stocks listed outside SEHK, orders will be sent to corresponding exchange where the stock is listed regardless of the spreads. In this context, your order will to be sent to corresponding exchange where the stock is listed for queuing unless such order is fully filled, cancelled by you or rejected by the exchange during the order period. Please note that your order will still be carried forward to next trading day after it is partially filled.
What is a Good till Max order?
A Good till Max order is a limit order similar to Good till Date order. Order will automatically be good for the next 30 calendar days after the order is placed, and cancelled on the morning following the 30th day, unless order is fully filled, specifically cancelled, instrument de-listed, or purged for corporate actions. Good till Max orders are available in the Singapore market only.
How do I know how much I have for buying stocks?
You will be able to see “Your cash and buying power” in the Overview page once you login to DBS Online Equity Trading Platform. It is displayed in the nominal currency of the stock you have selected (default in HKD) considering available cash balance and receivable stock sales proceeds in that particular currency in your Wealth Management Multi-Currency Settlement Account (MCSA).
Your buying power may also be subject to a trading limit as prescribed by the Bank from time to time. Any purchase orders via the DBS Online Equity Trading Platform with purchasing amount exceeding your unused trading limit will not be accepted.
Your unused limit will be reduced by the exact amount of all executed but not yet settled buy orders for all markets conducted via the DBS Online Equity Trading Platform (transaction amount plus all related transaction fees and levies inclusive); and only restores when the orders are settled (number of trading days required for settlement varies across markets. However, you will still be able to place sale orders online any time regardless of the selling amount or your current usage of the limit.
What should I do if I do not have sufficient fund in my Wealth Management portfolio for buying stocks?
You may transfer in new fund or exchange currency in the DBS iBanking page if you wish so (you must first open any of Current Accounts, Save & Cheque Accounts, HK Dollar Savings Accounts or Multi-Currency Savings Accounts in corresponding currencies).
How do I know if my order is being placed on DBS Online Equity Trading Platform?
Upon successful order submission, you will receive an online order confirmation with a reference number provided. This confirmation indicates that we have received your order instruction. To check if your order has been filled, you can view the order status online by clicking View Order Status or Order History.
| Order Status | Details |
|---|---|
| Pending |
Your instruction is received but not yet sent to the market. |
| Queuing (pre-opening session on a trading day) | Your instruction is received but is pending to be sent to the market. |
| Queuing (after the market opens on a trading day) | Your instruction has been sent to the market for queuing. |
| Filled | Your order has been fully filled according to your instruction. |
| Partial Filled |
Your order has been filled partially and the unfilled quantity will be queuing until the market closes. |
| Cancel Pending |
Your cancellation instruction has been submitted to Exchange and pending confirmation. |
| Amend Pending |
Your amendment instruction has been submitted to Exchange and pending confirmation. |
| Rejected |
Your instruction has been rejected. |
| Cancelled |
Your order has been successfully cancelled according to your instruction or automatically cancelled at the expiry of good-till order. |
| Reversed |
Filled order failing settlement on settlement day due to unexpected holidays of Exchanges, such as trading termination of The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong (the “SEHK”) under typhoon signal No.8. As to handle the delayed settlement due to the unexpected holding, system will generate and display a new order entry which bears the same transaction information with blank transaction reference in this page. Please note that this new order entry without transaction reference will only serve as settlement purpose, and will not execute your order and settlement repeatedly. |
| Expired | Your order was not executed on or before the order expiry date and has lapsed. |
How am I notified of the execution of a trade?
Two ways to find out if your order has been filled.
- Check order status online by clicking view Order Status.
- Opt in to receive trade confirmations via SMS and/or email as per your DBS iBanking Alert setting.
How do I amend my order?
If you have an outstanding order placed on the Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, Australia & United Kingdom markets, you may amend it by clicking "Amend" on the Orders page to proceed with the amendment. The Orders page will indicate if your amendment has been successful. We provide different amendment actions for different markets. Details are as shown below:
| Market | Allowed Amendment Action |
|---|---|
| Hong Kong |
Increase Quantity, |
| Singapore, Japan, Australia & United Kingdom | Decrease Quantity |
| U.S. & Canada | Not available |
How do I cancel my order?
If you have an outstanding order that is not yet filled in the market, you may cancel it by clicking "Cancel" on the Orders page to proceed with the cancellation. The Orders page will indicate if your amendment has been successful. Please note that all cancel orders are subject to prior fills.
What happens if the orders are not executed by the end of the business day?
All unmatched orders will expire at the end of the business day. If you wish to keep the order for the next business day, you will have to re-enter the order after the trading hours. If you have selected "Good till date", your order will be cancelled automatically on the expiry date.
What is the cut off time for entering orders?
Orders can be entered throughout the day, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. However, please be reminded that an order will be routed to the market in the next trading session if it is placed during non-trading hours.
For the Hong Kong market, under what circumstances could my order be rejected?
Your order could be rejected under any of the following circumstances (for illustration only and not exhaustive):
- You do not have sufficient funds for your buy order.
- You do not hold the stock or you have insufficient stocks for your sell order.
- The trading limit for your account has been exceeded.
- The buy or sell stock price is 100 spreads away from the market price for ELO, 20 spreads away from the market price for ALO placed during Pre-Opening Session, or 5% away from the reference price for ALO placed during Closing Auction Session
- Your order quantity is greater than 3,000 board lots.
- The order you want to amend or cancel has been filled.
- Your amended buy/sell order price is 100 spreads away from the market price for ELO (except for orders that have already been submitted to the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong and amended buy/sell orders with a price 20 spreads away from the market price), or 20 spreads away for ALO.
- Your inputted order price for an ELO is beyond the 9 best price spreads from the current price of the other side of the market (i.e. 10 bid/ask spreads).
- Your order price or amended order price is not valid depending on the prevailing market situation.
- Your order amendment is the same as the original order.
- The stock has been suspended.
- The stock you selected has been delisted.
- Any other reason for rejection provided by the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
- The system has encountered technical problems - such as outages, glitches and other delays.
For the Singapore market, under what circumstances could my order be rejected?
There are a number of reasons your order could be rejected and the common ones are listed here:
- You do not have sufficient funds for your buy order.
- You do not hold the stock or you have insufficient stocks for your sell order.
- Your order input price exceeds the allowable input price range of the stock set by the Singapore Exchange (the allowable input price range is usually within 10-30 spreads of a stock’s prevailing nominal price, depending on the denominated currency and asset type of the stock. Please refer to the Singapore Exchange’s website for more information.)
- The trading limit for your account has been exceeded.
- The order you want to amend or cancel has been filled.
- The stock you selected has been suspended.
- The stock you selected has been delisted.
- Any other reason for rejection provided by the Singapore Exchange.
- The system has encountered technical problems - such as outages, glitches and other delays.
- The limit price of your order is not the same as the closing auction price during Trade At Close session.
Can I sell shares that were bought on the same trading day?
Yes. You can do so as long as the buying and selling were done through us.
Can I use the fund receivable from the stocks I sold to buy a new stock before the sold stocks settle on T+2 day?
Yes. Our system will first hold the amount required for your new buy order from the receivable funds of your sell order which is fully filled or your sell order which is partially filled (after market close) before the settlement date of your sell order. (The settlement date varies across markets. For details, please refer to the Corporate Actions & Settlement FAQ.)
If the amount of your buy order is larger than the amount of the receivable funds, the remaining balance to be debited will be held from your account according to your instruction.
Can I place Odd Lot orders via DBS Online Trading Platform?
No. However, for DBS Private Bank and DBS Treasures Private Client customers, you may place orders via your Relationship Manager. For DBS Treasures customers, please call our DBS Treasures Securities Service Hotline at (852) 2290 8033.
What should I do if I want to trade special stocks?
For DBS Private Bank and DBS Treasures Private Client customers, you may place orders via your Relationship Manager. For DBS Treasures customers, please call our DBS Treasures Securities Service Hotline at (852) 2290 8033.
Do I receive a confirmation if the order is done?
Transaction advice will be sent to you by ordinary post. You may choose to receive preliminary notification via email or SMS alerts. Please update your mobile number and email address for alert notifications via DBS iBanking.
Can I send trade instructions via email?
No. DBS Online Trading Platform will not accept trade instructions via email.
What is short selling? Can I short-sell with DBS?
Short selling means selling shares that you do not own. In compliance with Hong Kong regulatory requirements, the Bank does not allow short selling.
What is Trade At Close Period (applicable to SGX market only)?
A new 10-minute long trading session introduced by SGX called “Trade At Close” (TAC) for the securities market that will take place after the closing auction routine ends.
During the TAC session, trades can only occur at a fixed price, that is "Closing Auction Price" (CAP) established by SGX during the “Non-Cancel Last” session.
Order amendments and cancellation is allowed during TAC.
If there is no closing price established during Non-Cancel Last session for any counter, then all the order entries will be rejected and there will be no order matching during TAC session on that business day for that counter.
Only Limit order and established closing auction price (CAP) will be accepted.
All unfilled Good till Date (GTD) during TAC, will be carried over to the following trading day.
What is Fill or Kill order (applicable to SGX market only)?
A market Fill or Kill (FOK) order is only applicable to the Singapore market. The entire quantity placed must be matched in full or the order will be cancelled. A market FOK order can only be entered during continuous trading hours from 09:00 – 12:00 and 13:00 – 17:04.
What is Fill and Kill order (applicable to SGX market only)?
A market Fill and Kill (FAK) order is only applicable to the Singapore market. Any portion of a market FAK order will be matched as soon as the order is placed and the remaining order will be cancelled. A market FAK order can only be entered during trading hours from 08:30 – 17:04
Risks associated with using market orders
Please take note that by placing a market FAK order during SGX Opening Routine, Mid-Day Break or Closing Routine, the order will be participating in Matching during Non-Cancel Phase. Orders that can be matched are matched at a single price computed based on SGX Algorithm.
For more information, please click here
A buy order can be filled at a much higher price than intended, or a sell order can be filled at a much lower price than intended. Using market orders during a volatile market is not recommended as there is a higher probability that the prices will change quickly. Hence, the incidence of ‘slippage’ is higher in fast-moving markets or for illiquid securities with thin order book and wide bid-ask spread. The order may be split across multiple investors on the other side of the transaction, resulting in different prices for the order.
Can I trade US OTC counters, Preference Shares and Bonds via DBS Online Equity Trading?
DBS Online Equity Trading platform does not facilitate the trading of US (OTC) Over-the-Counter Shares, Preference Shares and Bonds.
For DBS Private Bank and DBS Treasures Private Client customers, please contact your Relationship Manager for more information. For DBS Treasures customers, please call our DBS Treasures Securities Service Hotline at (852) 2290 8033.
Can I trade Japanese securities if I am a Japanese resident?
Dividends from Japanese listed equities and coupon payments of Japanese bonds payable to Japanese residents are subject to a 20.315% withholding tax rate pursuant to the relevant tax law in Japan*. Our custodians have informed us that they cannot administer and impose the abovementioned withholding tax to Japanese residents.
In view of the above, with effect from 31 March 2023, the Bank has stopped accepting buy trades and transfer in of Japanese listed equities and Japanese bonds from Japanese residents. Meanwhile, online equity trading capability of Japanese residents has also been suspended until further notice.
For more information, please contact your Relationship Manager or DBS Treasures Customer Service Hotline (852) 2961 2338.
*subject to change and announcement by the National Tax Agency Japan without prior notice.