AQUAS
AQUAS Financial, LLC is a US-registered broker-dealer operating a web and mobile trading platform offering commission-free stock and ETF trading, options, and OTC equities. The platform serves active retail and institutional investors through a single interface with advanced charting, order routing, and customizable workspaces.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2021
- HeadquartersAustin, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingServices
What AQUAS does
AQUAS Financial, LLC is a privately held, SEC- and FINRA-registered broker-dealer and SIPC member based in Austin, Texas, operating a next-generation online trading platform under the brand AQUAS. The company's core product is a web-based trading platform accessible via any browser on Mac and PC, complemented by native iOS and Android mobile applications and a standalone customer dashboard for account management, trade reports, and security settings. The platform offers commission-free trading for listed stocks and ETFs, options at $0.59 per contract, OTC equity trading, and professional-grade market data, supporting 100+ charting indicators, Black-Scholes options pricing with Greek calculations, customizable workspaces with 18+ trading component containers, and advanced order routing that accesses multiple liquidity sources. A single interface is designed to serve both retail and institutional investors, with account types covering Individual, Joint, Trust, and Business entities.
The business model is a self-serve, product-led growth model with a direct-to-consumer go-to-market approach. Revenue is generated through transaction fees (per-share fees on paid orders, options per-contract commissions, regulatory pass-through fees, $35 exercise/assignment charges, 8% margin interest, and short-borrow fees) and recurring market data subscriptions ($3–$94/month depending on professional status and data tier). The minimum account opening balance is $100, and the company provides customer support via phone ((972) 907-8700) and email ([email protected]). The leadership team brings 25+ years of financial markets experience, having previously built Investec Securities Corp and developed a 1999-era trading platform that was acquired by Bank of America for its Prime Broker business. As of the data available, the public account opening portal shows 'Coming Soon,' indicating the platform is in a pre-launch or limited-launch phase rather than at scale.
AQUAS firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- AQUAS
- Legal name
- AQUAS Financial, LLC
- Website
- https://aquastrading.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2021
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- AQUAS Financial, LLC is a US-registered broker-dealer operating a web and mobile trading platform offering commission-free stock and ETF trading, options, and OTC equities. The platform serves active retail and institutional investors through a single interface with advanced charting, order routing, and customizable workspaces.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
AQUAS industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Online Brokerage
- NAICS
- Securities and Commodity Exchanges (52321)
- SIC
- Security & Commodity Brokers, Dealers, Exchanges & Services (6200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Equities Trade Execution Platforms (ATS/MTF/ECN) (FSAFANAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Institutional Multi-Asset Trading Platforms (OTC/RFQ) (FSAFAEAB), OTC Desks & Block Trading Networks (FSAPADAH)
Keywords
Where AQUAS is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Austin
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Markets served
AQUAS business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- Equity Trading Commissions: Commission-free trading for listed stocks and ETFs (standard online). OTC equities charged at $6.95 per trade. Paid orders (market orders, marketable limit orders, orders under 250 shares) incur $0.004 per share or $0.99 flat fee.
- Options Trading: $0.59 per contract commission for options trades. Multiple-leg options strategies charged $0.59 per contract for total number of contracts. OCC fee of $0.055 per contract additional.
- Market Data Subscriptions: Monthly subscription fees for real-time market data. Non-professional subscribers: Level 1 Equities at $3/month, Options at $1.25/month. Professional subscribers pay higher fees: Level 1 Equities at $94/month, Options at $31.50/month. Non-pro users get live market data at no cost upon account opening.
- Regulatory and Exchange Fees: Pass-through fees including ORF (Options Regulatory Fee) at $0.02815 per contract, TAF Fee, SEC Fee, NSCC Fee, FOCUS Fee, and SIPC Fee. Options exercise or assignment charged at $35.
- Margin Interest: 8% annual margin debit interest charged on stocks held overnight with values exceeding equity.
- Short Locate and Borrow Fees: Daily short locates as quoted. Overnight borrow charged at 4x average cost for first night, additional days at 1x average cost. Odd lot positions rounded up to nearest hundred shares.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Commission-Free Equity Trading |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Options Trading |
| Subscription | Monthly | Non-Professional Market Data - Level 1 Equities |
| Subscription | Monthly | Non-Professional Market Data - Options |
| Subscription | Monthly | Professional Market Data - Level 1 Equities |
| Subscription | Monthly | Professional Market Data - Options |
| Usage-based | Monthly | Margin Interest |
| Usage-based | Pay-as-you-go | Short Selling Fees |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels5 records
AQUAS product offering
Product offeringCore offering
AQUAS is an SEC-registered broker-dealer (AQUAS Financial, LLC) that operates a web-based and mobile trading platform offering commission-free equity and ETF trading, options trading at $0.59 per contract, and OTC equity access. The platform provides professional-grade tools including advanced charting with 100+ indicators, Black-Scholes options analysis, customizable workspaces, advanced order routing, and real-time market data. It supports Individual, Joint, Trust, and Business brokerage accounts through a single interface serving both retail and institutional traders.
Product overview
AQUAS is a unified online trading platform consisting of the AQUAS Trading Platform (web-based), AQUAS Mobile App (iOS/Android), and AQUAS Customer Dashboard. The platform offers commission-free trading for stocks and ETFs, options trading, and OTC equities access. It supports multiple account types including Individual, Joint, Trust, and Business accounts. Key features include fully customizable workspaces, advanced charting with over 100+ indicators, options analysis with Black-Scholes pricing, and professional-grade market data. AQUAS targets both retail and institutional investors through a single interface.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- AQUAS Trading Platform A next-generation web-based online trading platform accessible via any browser on Mac and PC, offering commission-free trading for stocks and ETFs with advanced charting, customizable workspaces, professional-grade market data, and advanced order routing algorithms. Designed to support both retail and institutional investors through a single interface.
- AQUAS Mobile App Native mobile trading application available on iOS (Apple App Store) and Android (Google Play Store), providing seamless access to the AQUAS trading platform from mobile devices with full trading capabilities.
- Individual Account A general brokerage account with one owner to invest in stocks, options, and ETFs. Requires a minimum opening deposit of $100 and a $500 maintenance equity balance for market data subscriptions.
- Joint Accounts Brokerage accounts with two or more owners to invest in stocks, options, and ETFs, allowing shared investment management between multiple account holders.
- Trust Accounts A brokerage account where the owner is an entity and is managed by one or more trustees, designed for trust-based investment management in stocks, options, and ETFs.
- Business Accounts Brokerage accounts opened on behalf of an LLC, Partnership, or Corporation to invest in stocks, options, and ETFs, supporting entity-level investment activities.
- Market Data Subscriptions Monthly subscription-based real-time market data feeds for equities and options, with separate non-professional and professional subscriber pricing tiers. Non-professional subscribers receive live market data at no cost upon account opening.
Companies that use AQUAS
Customer profileSegments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
AQUAS technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature6 records
AQUAS partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
AQUAS competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- eToro: eToro is a multi-platform (web and mobile) commission-free broker with broad international reach — comparable to AQUAS's product-led, multi-platform distribution and low-minimum onboarding model.
- TradeStation: TradeStation is a broker-dealer focused on active and professional traders with advanced charting, order routing, and options analytics — overlapping directly with AQUAS's active-trader feature set and commission-based options pricing.
- Interactive Brokers: Interactive Brokers is a multi-asset broker-dealer serving retail and institutional clients with advanced order routing, options analytics, and global market access — closely aligned with AQUAS's unified retail/institutional platform strategy.
- Robinhood: Robinhood pioneered commission-free retail trading with mobile-first UX and offers options, stocks, and ETFs — directly comparable to AQUAS's commission-free positioning and multi-platform (web/iOS/Android) delivery.
- tastytrade: tastytrade is an options-centric broker with advanced multi-leg strategy tools and analytical content targeting active options traders — directly comparable to AQUAS's Black-Scholes pricing, Greeks, and multi-leg option strategy support.
- Webull: Webull offers commission-free trading with advanced charting, options analytics, and mobile-first design targeting active traders — highly comparable feature set to AQUAS including multi-leg options and customizable workspaces.
Broad incumbents
- E*TRADE (Morgan Stanley): E*TRADE is a long-established online broker-dealer offering commission-free trading and powerful active-trader tools (Power E*TRADE) — a broad incumbent with retail and institutional offerings similar to AQUAS's positioning.
- Fidelity Investments: Fidelity is a major incumbent broker offering commission-free trading, Active Trader Pro platform, and broad retail/institutional services — represents the scale benchmark AQUAS must differentiate against.
- Charles Schwab: Charles Schwab is a large incumbent broker-dealer offering stocks, options, ETFs with commission-free trading and advanced platforms (StreetSmart, thinkorswim) — a broad incumbent competitor that pressures AQUAS across pricing and tooling.
Emerging players
- Public.com: Public.com is an emerging mobile-first broker-dealer targeting younger retail investors with commission-free trading and community features — an emerging competitor in the same low-minimum, product-led-growth segment AQUAS targets.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
AQUAS social profiles
Digital presenceAQUAS financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
AQUAS leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
AQUAS funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
AQUAS M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about AQUAS
What does AQUAS do?
AQUAS is an SEC-registered broker-dealer (AQUAS Financial, LLC) that operates a web-based and mobile trading platform offering commission-free equity and ETF trading, options trading at $0.59 per contract, and OTC equity access. The platform provides professional-grade tools including advanced charting with 100+ indicators, Black-Scholes options analysis, customizable workspaces, advanced order routing, and real-time market data. It supports Individual, Joint, Trust, and Business brokerage accounts through a single interface serving both retail and institutional traders.
Is AQUAS a public or private company?
AQUAS is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was AQUAS founded?
AQUAS was founded in 2021. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is AQUAS based?
AQUAS is headquartered in Austin, United States, in the North America region.
How does AQUAS make money?
Six revenue lines are on record. Equity Trading Commissions are the primary driver. The others are options Trading, market Data Subscriptions, regulatory and Exchange Fees, margin Interest and short Locate and Borrow Fees.
Who are AQUAS's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are eToro, TradeStation, Interactive Brokers, Robinhood, tastytrade and Webull. Broad incumbents are E*TRADE (Morgan Stanley), Fidelity Investments and Charles Schwab. Public.com is listed as an emerging player.
Does AQUAS have an API?
No public API is recorded for AQUAS.
What industry is AQUAS in?
AQUAS's product category is Online Brokerage. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAFANAA, Equities Trade Execution Platforms (ATS/MTF/ECN), with a secondary code of FSAFAEAB, Institutional Multi-Asset Trading Platforms (OTC/RFQ). Its NAICS code is 52321 and its SIC code is 6200.