Poems Australia launches broker-run online trading app

Phillip Capital Australia has launched Poems Australia, an online trading platform that brings its full-service broking model to app-based investing, while keeping execution, custody and settlement in-house.

The launch puts the broker into a crowded market of low-cost digital share trading services. It also positions Poems Australia as a broker-run alternative to platforms that separate the customer interface from trade execution and asset holding.

Chief executive Craig Semmens says the key difference is structural in a sector dominated by apps and white-labelled services. "This isn't just a website or an app, it's a broker-run platform," he says. "Investors will know exactly who they're trading with, and exactly how their assets are held."

Poems Australia offers access to 12 global markets via mobile. The platform combines low brokerage with fractional investing, and stores client data in Australia. It also routes transactions through an Australian-based broker rather than a third-party provider.

Phillip Capital Australia is an exchange participant on the ASX and in overseas markets, and a direct clearing and settlement member. It executes, clears and settles trades through its own infrastructure rather than outsourcing those services.

Semmens says the firm is the broker on the other side of each transaction across the markets it supports. "When clients place a trade, they execute directly with us. We are the broker in every market we service," he says.

Custody Focus

Custody arrangements have come under greater scrutiny as retail trading has shifted from desktop platforms to mobile-first apps. Many services present a single brand to investors while relying on external parties for execution, custody, settlement or data hosting.

Poems Australia is built around Phillip Capital's in-house model for those functions. The firm argues that removing intermediaries simplifies accountability and reduces complexity in the transaction chain.

Semmens says Phillip Capital manages the lifecycle from account opening to settlement and custody. "We manage the full trading lifecycle in-house, from the moment an account is opened through to the custody and settlement of assets," he says.

For Australian equities, clients receive a CHESS-sponsored Holder Identification Number (HIN), registering securities in the client's own name on the ASX. International shares also sit under the firm's in-house custody structure.

Data residency is another feature the broker highlights. "There is no reliance on third-parties and all data remains in Australia," Semmens says.

Market Proliferation

Australia's online trading market has expanded rapidly over the past decade, with more than a dozen platforms offering low-cost access to domestic and international equities. Features such as fractional investing and simplified onboarding have broadened participation, particularly among younger investors.

That growth has also made market structure less visible to many customers, particularly when a platform brand is not the same entity responsible for executing trades or holding assets. Semmens says the distinction matters as retail participation rises. "More people are trading through apps, but many aren't aware of who actually sits behind the trade and how their assets are held," he says.

He says Poems Australia is designed for this environment. "In many cases, the platform providing the app is not the entity executing the trade or holding the assets," Semmens says.

Semmens adds that a broker-backed model makes responsibility for trades and holdings clearer. "Our model removes that ambiguity and offers clients clarity and confidence over how their assets are held," he says.

Counterparty risk is a central theme in the firm's messaging. Phillip Capital says Poems Australia provides global market access without layering third-party intermediaries into the process, reducing counterparty risk that can arise in multi-layered models.