Hatch is a New Zealand platform that gives NZ investors access to US shares. Founded in 2018 and now owned by FNZ, it was one of the first platforms to make US stock investing genuinely accessible to everyday New Zealanders.
Best for: NZ investors who want straightforward access to US shares on an FMA-regulated platform. Good app, straightforward pricing. Not ideal for: Frequent traders — $3 USD/trade and ~0.5% FX means costs add up. Tiger Brokers or Interactive Brokers are cheaper for high-volume trading. No NZX access.
Hatch at a Glance
| Founded | 2018 |
| Owner | FNZ |
| FMA licensed | ✅ Yes |
| US broker | Drivewealth (SIPC-protected) |
| Platform fee | $0 |
| Transaction fee | $3 USD per trade ($0.50 for Kids Accounts) |
| FX fee | ~0.50% on NZD → USD conversion |
| Minimum deposit | $1 |
| Markets | NYSE, Nasdaq |
| NZX shares | ❌ No |
| Managed funds | ❌ No |
| Auto-invest | ✅ Yes (fees capped at 1% per order) |
| Fractional shares | ✅ Yes |
Fees in Detail
Transaction fee
$3 USD per trade — flat, regardless of trade size. Kids Accounts pay $0.50 per trade.
For very frequent small trades, the flat $3 USD fee is expensive. A $100 trade costs approximately 3% in brokerage alone.
FX fee
Hatch charges approximately 0.50% when converting NZD to USD. You can also deposit USD directly if you have a USD account, avoiding the FX fee on the way in.
Round-trip FX cost: Buy $5,000 USD of shares = $25 FX fee. Sell = another $25 FX fee. Total FX: $50 on a $5,000 investment. Plus ~$6 USD brokerage ($3 buy, $3 sell). Total round-trip: ~$56 USD on a $5,000 position.
Compared to Tiger Brokers (~0.20% FX), Hatch is more expensive for currency conversion — but the difference is less significant for buy-and-hold investors than for frequent traders.
No platform fee
Hatch charges no ongoing platform or custody fee. You only pay when you trade.
What You Can Invest In
US shares (NYSE, Nasdaq)
Access to thousands of US-listed stocks and ETFs — the full range available on NYSE and Nasdaq. Popular choices include individual companies (Apple, Nvidia, Tesla) and US ETFs (SPY, VOO, QQQ, VTI).
Note on US ETFs vs NZ PIE funds: Buying a US ETF like VOO directly on Hatch means you hold a foreign investment — which counts toward your $50,000 FIF threshold. Buying an equivalent NZ-domiciled fund (e.g. InvestNow Foundation Series) does not trigger FIF. This is an important consideration as your balance grows.
Fractional shares
Like Sharesies, Hatch supports fractional share purchases — you can buy $50 of a $500 share. This is useful for expensive US stocks.
Auto-Invest
Hatch’s Auto-Invest feature lets you set up recurring purchases in specific shares or ETFs. For smaller, frequent investing, Auto-Invest is popular — fees are capped at 1% per order, which makes regular small purchases more cost-effective than paying the flat $3 USD trade fee each time.
This is useful for dollar-cost averaging into US positions — set a fortnightly buy of a US ETF and Hatch handles the currency conversion and trade automatically.
App and User Experience
Hatch has a clean, NZ-focused app. It’s less feature-rich than Tiger Brokers for trading tools but more beginner-friendly. Key features:
- Watchlists and portfolio tracking
- Price alerts
- Basic research (price charts, company overview, news)
- Auto-invest management
Customer support is NZ-based — stronger local support than Tiger Brokers or Stake.
Safety
Hatch is FMA-licensed and owned by FNZ. US shares are held through Drivewealth LLC, a US broker-dealer with SIPC protection up to USD$500,000 per customer (including USD$250,000 for cash). This makes Hatch’s safety profile for US shares strong.
Tax
US dividends are subject to 15% US withholding tax under the NZ-US tax treaty. Hatch automatically withholds this and you can claim a foreign tax credit on your NZ tax return.
If your total overseas investment cost exceeds $50,000, FIF rules apply. Hatch provides a transaction history export but does not generate FIF reports — use Sharesight for automated FIF calculation.
Set your PIR rate if holding PIE fund equivalents (most of what Hatch offers is non-PIE direct shares, so PIR is less relevant for Hatch specifically).
Hatch vs Competitors
| Hatch | Sharesies | Tiger Brokers | Stake | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US brokerage | $3 USD | $3 NZD | From USD$1.99 | $3 NZD |
| FX fee | ~0.50% | 0.40% | ~0.20% | 0.70% deposit; no trade conversion |
| NZX shares | ❌ | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ |
| ASX shares | ❌ | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ |
| NZ-owned | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ |
| SIPC protection | ✅ (Drivewealth) | ✅ (Drivewealth) | Confirm in PDS | ✅ (US broker) |
Full comparison: Best Platform for US Stocks NZ 2026
Who Hatch Is Best For
✅ Good for:
- Investors who want FMA-regulated access to US shares
- Buy-and-hold US stock or ETF investors (low transaction frequency = low brokerage)
- Investors who want SIPC protection through a familiar NZ-connected platform
- Regular investors using Auto-Invest (1% fee cap makes it cost-effective)
❌ Less ideal for:
- Frequent traders — $3 USD/trade + 0.5% FX is expensive at high volume
- NZX investors — Hatch doesn’t offer NZ shares
- Fee-focused investors — Tiger Brokers is cheaper on both brokerage and FX
Verdict
Hatch is a solid, trustworthy platform for NZ investors wanting US share access. Its FMA licensing, SIPC protection through Drivewealth, and clean app make it a safe choice. It’s not the cheapest for frequent trading — Tiger Brokers wins there — but for buy-and-hold investors and those using Auto-Invest, the pricing is competitive and the NZ-connected support adds confidence.