Think of some people who have made the most money from the stock market, whether long-time investors like Warren Buffett and Peter Lynch, or more active traders like Jesse Livermore and George Soros.  

Where did they make most of their money? The US stock market is always the answer. It is no news that the US remains the most powerful economy in the world and the home of many innovative companies. 

Though Sarwa offers an ETF that invests in the top companies in the UAE (ticker is “UAE”), we recognise that the best-performing companies for investors still reside in the US.   

If you are learning how to trade stocks in the UAE and want to maximise your results (and/or diversify your portfolio), you cannot ignore the trading and investment opportunities offered by this market. 

But success requires that you have a stock trading platform or brokerage firm in the UAE that can: 

• Provide you access to thousands of US stocks, both the established and the new ones
• Offer low commissions and fees
• Provide you with relevant news and market reports to aid your trading
• Secure your data and money
• Provide you with educational resources that will make you a better trader, among others

In what follows, we will show you how Sarwa Trade – Sarwa’s stock trading platform – meets your needs and how to trade stocks in the UAE on the platform in just a few easy and seamless steps.  

[Do you want to achieve improved stock trading results, or are you just learning how to trade stocks in the UAE? Subscribe to Sarwa’s newsletter today for regular educational resources that will help you become a better stock trader.]

Why should you trade US stocks with Sarwa?

While trading success depends majorly on your trading and risk management strategies, we cannot overlook the importance of the trading platform (or stock broker) that you use. 

The fees you pay, the speed of execution of your trades, and the kind of trades you can make (market orders, limit orders, and stop orders) will affect the profitability of your trades and how well you can manage risk.

Lower fees and speedy execution will increase your net profit and the possibility of limit and stop orders can help you automatically take profits and stop losses, a crucial part of risk management. 

Why then should you use Sarwa Trade as your trading platform when you learn how to trade stocks in the UAE? Let’s explain.

A wide range of US stocks

Sarwa Trade offers access to over 5,000 US stocks and ETFs across the major US stock exchanges.

This means that you are not limited to the blue-chip and large-cap stocks (APPL, AMZN, TSLA, etc). If your trading strategy requires you to trade mid-cap or small-cap stocks, Sarwa has got you covered. 

Low commissions and fees

We charge a competitive commission of $1 or 0.25% of the traded or transaction value. 

More importantly, transfers from your local UAE account to your brokerage account and from the latter back to the former, are free of charge. 

Relevant news and market reports

Like other financial products (crypto, forex, CFDs), trending news can impact a stock’s price movements.

Important macroeconomic (interest rate changes, inflation data, economic growth data, etc), industry (new entry, new exit, technological change, etc.), and company-specific (earnings report, management change, new product, internal trades) news can cause price fluctuation. 

In addition to looking at the charts, being on top of such news can improve your trading. 

Sarwa provides you with regular and up-to-date news and market reports on the trading platform. An example, with AAPL, is shown below: 

Secured platform

Cybersecurity becomes more important the more digitised the world becomes. 

Sarwa Trade uses 256-bit bank-level security to protect your data and money. Whether you are accessing it via the website or the app, you can be confident that you are not being exposed to hackers. 

Educational resources 

Through our blog and newsletter, we provide educational resources that can help you on your trading and investment journey.

We don’t just provide a platform where you can trade, we are invested in seeing you succeed so you can partake of the wealth that is the US stock market.  

User-friendly platform

Our website and app are easily navigable and aesthetically pleasing. The user interface and experience make for smooth and comfortable scrolling. 

Fractional trading and low minimum balance requirement

If you are a beginner or you don’t have enough capital to buy up to a share of a stock, you can buy a fraction of it. 

Fractional trading allows you to test your trading strategies with a few dollars instead of a demo account. It is also a good way to build a diversified portfolio on a low budget. 

Furthermore, you only need $1 to get started on Sarwa Trade. This makes our platform accessible to everyone in Dubai,UAE, and the rest of the gulf irrespective of their financial situation or strength. In other words, we are firm believers in starting small. 

Regulatory compliance

Sarwa is regulated in the Abu Dhabi Global Markets (ADGM) by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA). We pay attention to relevant regulatory guidelines and ensure proper compliance across the board.  

How to trade stocks in the UAE with Sarwa: A step-by-step guide

Now that you are ready to enjoy the numerous benefits of stock trading with Sarwa Trade, let’s show you how to trade in the US stock market from the UAE in 6 steps. 

(Disclaimer: Stocks used as examples in this section are for illustrative purposes and not recommendations. Also, past performance does not guarantee future results.)

1. Download the mobile app

Sarwa Trade is one of the products offered on the Sarwa app.  You can download the Sarwa app on the Google Play Store as well as the Apple Store. 

2. Create an account 

Once you have downloaded the app, you can create an account (as long as you are 18 and above). All you need is your name, phone number, email, and password. 

You can also register for Sarwa on the website. Registering a Sarwa account gives you access to Sarwa Trade. 

Completing the Know Your Customer (KYC) process is part of how to open a stock trading account in the UAE. Therefore, we will ask for a valid copy of your passport (or ID), a utility bill to confirm your address, and a live selfie during the onboarding process. 

(Note: You do not need DFM’s investor number [NIN] to open a Sarwa account.)

3. Credit your trading account

Having covered how to open a stock trading account in the UAE, let’s consider how to fund it. 

You can do this by going to the “Fund” tab from your app’s homepage (as seen below).  

There are two main ways to fund your account: through a local transfer from your UAE bank account (free of charge) and your debit card. 

There is also an instant funding option with your linked bank account.   

4. Find choice stocks

Now that you have money in your account, let’s examine how to trade in the US stock market from the UAE. 

To begin, go to the “Trade” tab on the app’s homepage, as shown below: 

If you already have a stock in mind (with the right volume, volatility, and diversification benefit), you can search for it through the search bar just below the account balance section. 

On the other hand, if you are just learning how to trade in international stocks from the UAE, you can explore the full range of options available by clicking on “View all” just to the right of the “Your Equities” section.  

Click on the ticker of the stock of interest to start trading. This will take you to the stock’s homepage, as shown below (with AAPL being our example):

Below is more information about the various tabs: 

• Summary: When you click the “Summary” tab, you will find basic stock data like the share price (open, high, and low), the daily trading volume, market cap, and P/E ratio, among others in real-time. 

Below is a sample “Summary” page for AAPL: 

• News: As we have said, stock traders need to be on top of news and market reports that can affect a stock’s movement. Before you buy stocks in the UAE, you should consider the news. Sarwa Trade provides the latest news updates. 

Below is a sample “News” page for AAPL: 

• Orders: This section is where you will find information on your previous orders. 

• Transactions: Like the “Orders” section, here you can find information on past buy and sell transactions. Below is a sample: 

5. Create buy orders

You can create a buy order right from the stock’s homepage or from the “Transactions” section. 

After clicking on the “Buy” button, you will land on a page like the one below: 

Let’s say some words on the five different ways you can buy stocks in the UAE through the Sarwa platform:

• Buy in shares: This option allows you to input the number of shares you want to buy. As said above, Sarwa allows you to buy a fraction of a share. Therefore, you can put any number above 0 as long as the dollar equivalent is not less than $1. 

When you input the number of shares, you will see the dollar equivalent based on the stock’s current market price. 

• Buy in dollars: Suppose you just want to buy $100 worth of the shares of a stock. Instead of calculating how many shares you will require, you can just buy in dollars and input $100 as the buy amount.

When you input the dollar amount, the platform will calculate the number of shares you can expect to own based on the stock’s current market price. 

• Auto trade: If you want to keep accumulating the shares of a stock at regular intervals, the auto trade option is for you. This approach is also known as dollar cost averaging and it is more common among long-term investors seeking to reduce the average cost of their investment portfolio.   

• Limit buy order: A limit buy order is an order to purchase a stock when the price is equal to or less than a certain price. In essence, there is a maximum price above which you are not willing to buy. 

For example, if AAPL is selling for $500 per share but you are not willing to pay more than $450, you can set a limit buy order at $450. If the price is at or below $450, your order will be triggered.  

Note that there is a phrase – “Extended hours available” – just beside the “Limit buy order” section. This means that the platform can execute your limit buy orders outside normal trading hours (pre-market trading or after-hours trading). 

Though liquidity can be low during extended hours, traders can get more favourable prices and trade based on news released outside of normal trading hours.  

• Stop buy order: Stop buy order sets a fixed price at which you are willing to buy. Continuing with the above example, if you set a stop-buy order at $450, the order won’t be triggered at $420 or $440 (even though they are less than $459). Your order will go through only when the market price is at $450.  

6. Create sell orders

Sell orders are similar to buy orders. You can access the “Sell” button through the stock’s homepage or the “Transactions” section. 

When you click on the button, you will land on the page below: 

Let’s go through the five sell options you have:

• Sell in shares: This allows you to state the number of shares you want to sell. Fractional trading also allows you to sell a fraction of a share. 

• Sell in dollars: Instead of inputting the number of shares you want to sell, you can input a dollar amount.  The platform will then convert it into a number of shares based on the current market price.

• Close position: This is a quick way to sell all your shareholding in a particular stock. 

• Limit sell order: This is an order to sell at or above a certain price. There is a minimum price below which you are not willing to sell. The platform can also execute limit sell orders outside normal trading hours. 

• Stop sell order: Unlike a limit sell order, this will be triggered only when the stock is trading at a specific price.  

An important part of learning stock trading in the UAE is setting profit targets and stop losses that align with your risk tolerance and financial goals. Stop-sell orders are a good way to do this. 

Yes, having strong trading and risk management strategies is the recipe for success in stock trading in the UAE.

However, using an online trading platform like Sarwa Trade can contribute to your trading success through enhanced trading skills, lower cost, improved risk management, security of data and money, and excellent user experience. 

[Learning how to trade stocks in the UAE? Sign up for Sarwa Trade today to start your stock trading journey on the right foot or to improve your trading experience and get better results.]