Brokerage giant Charles Schwab will allow investors to buy fractional shares of stocks

Charles Schwab, one of the largest investment brokerage firms in the U.S. with $3.2 trillion in assets under management, will soon introduce a feature that allows users to purchase fractional shares on its platform, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal. 

The brokerage giant did not specify when the feature will be launched and instead tells the WSJ that it is "constantly working on new services designed to appeal to our evolving client base."

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Today's announcement comes weeks after Charles Schwab announced it was completely eliminating trading commissions for its users, leading to a cascade of competing brokerage firms like TD Ameritrade and E*TRADE to do the same.

The ability to purchase fractional shares is not new in the finance industry. Firms like M1 Finance and investing startup Acorns have offered their users the option to purchase fractional shares of companies. Charles Schwab's move, however, would make it the first major online brokerage to offer this option.

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Steven Zheng is a researcher for The Block. He joined The Block in August 2018. Steven graduated from St. John’s University with a degree in economics. Previously, he covered blockchain and crypto at Radicle, a startup analytics firm. He also had brief stints at Cheddar, a media startup, and Bowery Capital, a venture capital firm. He owns bitcoin. Follow Steven on Twitter at: @Dogetoshi