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Smart ways to fund your US brokerage account from Europe: tips and guidance

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US brokers with international clients

The essence

ACH transfers - your cheapest option

ACH transfers with Wise

Apex Clearing and Wise/Revolut ACH transfers.

 

Investing in U.S. Markets from Europe

If you are based in Europe and want to invest in the U.S. stock market, opening an account with a U.S.-based brokerage firm is often one of the most effective options. Several American brokers accept international clients and provide access to a wide range of financial instruments, including U.S. stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and other securities.

Through these platforms, international investors can participate directly in some of the world’s largest and most liquid financial markets.

However, one challenge European investors often face is funding their U.S. brokerage account. Transferring money from Europe to the United States can involve additional costs such as:

  • International bank transfer fees

  • Currency conversion charges

  • Intermediary banking fees

Although there are strategies to reduce these expenses—such as using certain transfer services or brokers that support lower-cost funding methods—some platforms may still require investors to absorb these costs when depositing funds.

Because of this, it is important to evaluate both brokerage features and funding costs before selecting a platform, especially if you plan to deposit funds regularly.

Smart ways to fund your US brokerage account from Europe

US brokers with international clients

pening a US brokerage account from Europe is no longer a tall order as there is a rather good selection of US brokers and trading platforms that accept international clients. Most of these brokers, however, offer only USD-denominated accounts, meaning that you will have to transfer USD to fund your account. If you have a personal bank account in a currency other than USD, you will be charged a conversion fee when topping up your account.

Major US brokerages that accept clients from Europe: 

  • Firstrade
  • Interactive Brokers 
  • Lightspeed Trading 
  • Tastyworks
  • ZacksTrade
  • Charles Schwab 
  • TradeStation 
  • Alpaca Trading 
  • Passfolio 
  • TradeZero 

Opening an account at a digital bank will potentially save you a lot in conversion fees if you are depositing funds into your US brokerage account in any currency other than USD. Digital banks like Revolut and Wise offer bank accounts in several currencies with great currency exchange rates, as well as free or cheap international bank transfers. Opening an account takes only a few minutes on your phone.

Smart ways to fund your US brokerage account from Europe

The essence

  • European traders with a US brokerage account typically have to fund their accounts in USD 

  • Opening an account at a digital bank can save you conversion costs 

  • Wire transfers, widely accepted by US brokers, are costly transactions

  • You may use international ACH transfers to deposit funds into your account at select US brokers with Wise

  • Apex Clearing, a clearing house used by several US brokers, no longer accepts Wise transfers

  • Some alternative financial service providers such as CurrencyFair are still cheaper than a traditional wire transfer

Smart ways to fund your US brokerage account from Europe

ACH transfers - your cheapest option

Although most US brokers that cater to international customers charge no deposit fees, wire transfers can prove costly with fees as high as $50 per transaction. One way to lower your deposit costs is to use an ACH transfer to send money to your US brokerage account.
ACH is short for Automated Clearing House network, and it includes thousands of financial institutions. ACH transfers are electronic, bank-to-bank money transfers processed through this network. Banks and other financial service providers gather the transactions in batches and process them at set times, typically three times each business day.
Although not the fastest way to move money around (ACH transfers typically take 1-2 business days to clear), ACH deposits have a huge advantage: in most cases they are free or cost very little.
ACH is a US local payment network and ACH transfers are almost exclusively used within the US. Nevertheless, Europeans can also use so-called IATs, which are International ACH Transfers. IATs are categorized as ‘International’ when they originate from a foreign country. Most transfers originated through popular online international money transfer tools also typically qualify as an IAT.

Smart ways to fund your US brokerage account from Europe

ACH transfers with Wise

How European Investors Can Fund a U.S. Brokerage Account

If you live in Europe and maintain a U.S. brokerage account, one practical solution for transferring funds is opening a USD account with Wise. Setting up a Wise account is relatively straightforward, and once it is created, you can connect it to your brokerage account to initiate ACH transfers.

This option works best with U.S. brokers that allow deposits from Wise. Examples include platforms such as Passfolio and Alpaca Trading, among others.

Using Wise can significantly reduce international transfer costs, since the service connects bank accounts across multiple countries and facilitates efficient currency transfers. Through this system, you can send U.S. dollars to American bank or brokerage accounts that accept ACH payments.

How the Transfer Process Works

To complete the transfer:

  1. Link your Wise USD account to your brokerage account.

  2. Select ACH transfer as your funding method.

  3. Enter the required ACH routing number and account number.

  4. Complete the verification process using the confirmation code provided by your broker.

The first transfer may take longer, sometimes up to five business days, while the system verifies and connects the accounts. After the setup is completed, future transfers may process much faster, occasionally within the same day.

Using Revolut for Transfers

Revolut currently supports inbound International ACH Transfers (IAT) only. This means you can receive funds into your Revolut account through this method but cannot use it to deposit money into a brokerage account.

In practice, this means Revolut can be useful if you want to withdraw funds from your brokerage account, but it is not suitable for funding or topping up your trading account through ACH transfers.

Smart ways to fund your US brokerage account from Europe

Apex Clearing and Wise/Revolut ACH transfers

In a negative development, you will find that some brokers, which have in the past accepted ACH transfers with Wise no longer do so. The reason for this is that Apex Clearing, a clearing firm that many brokers use to settle investment transactions, stopped accepting Wise and Revolut deposits. So if you used your Wise account to fund your tastyworks or TradeZero account from Europe through Wise, you will not be able to do so. In addition to the transfer not being cleared, you will be charged a hefty fee of between $30-$50 for the failed transaction.
tastyworks, for instance, warns international clients that any attempt to link their Wise (formerly TransferWise) account to their tastyworks account will be rejected when trying to transfer funds. As a result, the clearing firm will charge a $30 ACH Reversal Fee. At TradeZero, which also uses the services of Apex Clearing, the ACH Reversal Fee is $50.
Major US broker that accept international clients and use Apex Clearing include:

  • Firstrade
  • Tastyworks 
  • TradeZero

At tastyworks, you may use CurrencyFair to transfer USD to your brokerage account but expect to pay $20 per transaction in fees as this is how much CurrencyFair’s intermediary bank charges. This may still prove a cheaper option than a wire transfer. 

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