They say that all publicity is good publicity… but I’m not sure that’s true. Take, for example, the recent news about the FinTech brokerage WeBull. As CNBC reports, the House Select Committee on China found that “Webull’s ownership architecture, technical workforce, technology infrastructure, cross-border data routing, corporate financing, and compliance frameworks are tied in structural ways to the People’s Republic of China.” Moreover, Representative John Moolenaar told CNBC, “Using technology providers in mainland China and an opaque China-linked ownership structure, Webull exposes its data to our foremost adversary.”
That report sent the $BULL stock from $7.30 to $5.85 — although it managed to close at $6.31 today.
Cards on the table: I never liked WeBull. I opened an account years ago and found it incredibly confusing. That opinion was reinforced today when I logged in to see how much I even had in the account (it was $5 after I figured out how to sell the $2 in stocks I had).
Anyway, if you were smarter than me and managed to navigate WeBull but now want to leave the app, you can currently earn a bonus when transferring your account. But while all three of these competing brokerages are offering a 3% match, their terms are a bit different.
First up is Robinhood, which is offering an uncapped 3% bonus through October 16. From my experience, after making the transfer, the bonus amount should post to your account fairly quickly. The catch here is that, if you withdraw the transferred funds within five years of moving them over, Robinhood may claw back some of your bonus. For those who transfer at least $7,500, Robinhood will also reimburse the ACAT transfer fee of $75, which WeBull charges. By the way, Robinhood is also offering 2% on transfers from any other brokerages through the 16th as well.
Next is Public. Their promotion runs a bit longer, currently slated to last through October 26th. As noted, theirs is also 3%, although it does have a cap of $1,000,000 in total transferred value — meaning you could earn up to $30,000. Additionally, Public will be paying out its bonuses in monthly installments lasting 72 months (that’s six years!). So, if you transfer $120,000 from WeBull, your $3,600 bonus would be paid out in $50 increments.
Lastly, SoFi has also joined the fun. They currently have the shortest promo period, with the 3% offer good through October 15th. Their cap is set at $5,000,000 transferred, for a maximum bonus of $150,000. SoFi states that bonuses will be paid within five business days of funds settling. But, like Robinhood, SoFi may charge an early withdrawal fee if you don’t wait a full five years for your bonus to vest. There’s a whole table on their site explaining how this works.
As you can see, there are some pros and cons to each of these options. I will note, though, that Robinhood is the only one I saw mention the $75 fee that WeBull is likely to charge you for transferring your account. Still, your decision will likely come down to how much you’re transferring, how long you’re willing to stay with your new brokerage, and how quickly you prefer your bonus to be paid.
Ultimately, while I don’t really know what to make of the accusations against WeBull, if you can score yourself a 3% bonus from a rival brokerage, it may well be worth it.