What US shares are available on Sharesies?What US shares are available on Sharesies?

Edit: Since publishing this article, we’ve added Australian shares to Sharesies. Check out the investments now available on Sharesies.

At Sharesies, our vision is to give someone with $5 the same investment opportunities as someone with $500,000. Since 2017, we’ve made investing in the New Zealand sharemarket easy and accessible to over 170,000 Kiwis. Now that we’ve added US shares to Sharesies, you’ve got even more choice and control to grow your wealth!

You now have access to an additional 3,000+ companies and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) across the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), Nasdaq, and Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE). You’ve got the opportunity to diversify your investment portfolio, learn about thousands of new companies and funds, and have your US and NZ shares all in one beautiful place. 🍍

A brief history of the US share market

The US share market started in 1790 with the Philadelphia Stock Exchange trading government bonds. Two years later, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) launched with just five investments, including the Bank of New York—the first listed company on the exchange, which you can still invest in today!

In the 19th century, people met on the curbs of Lower Manhattan to invest in emerging industries like railroads, oil, and textiles. These “curbstone brokers” came together as the New York Curb Market, which (after a few name changes along the way) became the American Stock Exchange—now known as the NYSE American.

There are currently 13 registered exchanges in the US, including the NYSE and Nasdaq—the two largest exchanges in the world in terms of market capitalisation. Share markets around the world often follow what’s happening in the US; the S&P 500 (an index made up of 500 large listed US companies) is one of the most commonly followed indices worldwide!

An overview of the US exchanges on Sharesies

You’re able to invest in thousands of US companies and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) across the NYSE, Nasdaq, and CBOE. Let’s take a look!

New York Stock Exchange (NYSE)

The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is the largest and one of the oldest exchanges in the US. It began in 1792 with 24 New York City brokers signing the Buttonwood Agreement (an agreement outlining the rules of trading) under a buttonwood tree on New York City’s Wall Street. 🌳

The NYSE lists both companies and ETFs, including a bunch of names you’ll recognise like McDonald’s, Walt Disney, and Nike.

It also includes companies that you might interact with on a daily basis but might not necessarily know the names of, like Procter & Gamble (who own consumer goods brands like Gillette and Pantene) and Mondelez International (who own food brands like Oreo and Cadbury).

A couple others include the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (an exchange-traded fund that tracks the S&P 500) and Berkshire Hathaway (a holding company with Warren Buffet as its CEO)!

Nasdaq

Founded in 1971 by the National Association of Securities Dealers, Nasdaq (National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations) is the second-largest exchange in the world. Nasdaq was the world’s first electronic share market, and the first US exchange to trade online! 💻

The Nasdaq lists both companies and ETFs, and is most well known for its technology shares. This includes the FAANG companies (Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix, and Google’s parent company Alphabet), Tesla, and Microsoft. Apple even launched its initial public offering on the Nasdaq in 1980!

Others on the Nasdaq include Beyond Meat (a plant-based meat substitute producer), recently listed Warner Music Group (home to artists like Ed Sheeran and Cardi B), and Zoom Video Communications (not to be confused with another Nasdaq-listed company, Zoom Technologies!).

Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE)

The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) was founded in 1973 as the first exchange for trading options in the US. CBOE also created the Volatility Index (VIX), a real-time index that tracks the share market’s expectation of volatility over the next 30 days—also known as the ‘Fear Index’! 🎢

While we aren’t offering options on Sharesies just yet, we’ve added all of the companies and ETFs listed on CBOE, including Cboe Global Markets itself (the company that owns CBOE)!

CBOE also lists a range of ETFs that give you access to specific markets around the world, like the iShares MSCI Denmark Capped ETF, VanEck Vectors Russia ETF, and VanEck Vectors Vietnam ETF.

A few others include The 3D Printing ETF (made up of companies involved in the 3D printing industry), iShares Gold Strategy ETF (providing exposure to the price performance of gold), and iShares Core MSCI EAFE ETF (~2,500 companies in Europe, Australia, Asia, and the Far East).