A Holder Identification Number (HIN) is a unique number issued to you when you <a href="https://trading.hellostake.com/sign-up?_aid=35cb58d6-fd91-426c-8ca9-a0360734b295&amp;_branch_match_id=1096628489932176516&amp;utm_source=Hellostake.com&amp;utm_campaign=Homepage&amp;utm_medium=Landing%20Page&amp;_branch_referrer=H4sIAAAAAAAAA8soKSkottLXz0ovMtRLLCjQy8nMy9Z3Da2ITHYPNS23sI9PzEyxNTZNTjK1SDHTTUuxNNQ1MTJL1rVITrTUTTQwNjMwNzZJMrI0BQBBeyBISgAAAA%3D%3D">open an ASX account</a> with Stake. Your HIN identifies you directly to the ASX as the sole owner of any shares you purchase on the platform. If you have HINs on other platforms and wish to transfer them directly to your Stake HIN, simply follow the instructions <a href="https://hellostake.com/hin-transfer">here</a>. We may ask for further information before performing an existing HIN transfer.  
<h4 id="h_01HGW2JZ7Q1GZS6BWN9068SHW9">Where can I find my HIN?</h4>
You can find your HIN under Profile &gt; Account Details &gt; HIN. The HIN consists of 11 characters beginning with an X. You can learn more about HINs <a href="https://hellostake.com/blog/stake-academy/what-is-a-hin">here</a>. If you have any questions about your own HIN, you can get in touch with the Stake support team <a href="https://hellostake.com/support/contact-us">here</a>.

Holder identification numbers (HIN)

<h3 id="h_01J7W3GEJEW44QWEFVG19PDZJ8">AUS general regulatory requirements</h3>
The Corporations Act prohibits market manipulation, including orders or trades that: 
<ul>
<li>
Create an artificial price for trading in financial products (s1041A) 
</li>
<li>
Create a false or misleading appearance of trading activity (s1041B)
</li>
<li>
Artificially maintain trading prices (s1041C). 
</li>
</ul>
The Act also prohibits insider trading (s1043A), which refers to buying or selling financial products while in possession of “inside information” (defined in s1042A). 
These are only some of the provisions of the Corporations Act that apply to your trading activity. We encourage you to seek independent advice as to whether particular conduct may breach the Act before placing orders if you are at all unsure. 
The ASIC Market Integrity Rules require a Market Participant (such as Finclear) to not do anything, or fail to do anything, which would result in a market not being fair and orderly (5.9.1). 
The MIRs also prohibit any Market Participant from placing any customer order that may create a false or misleading appearance of trading activity in, or market or price for, a financial product. 
A Market Participant is also required to consider whether, in the circumstances, that is the likely effect of the order (5.7.1). The circumstances that must be considered for this purpose are listed in 5.7.2, and include:
<ul>
<li>Whether an order or the execution of an order would materially impact the price of a security</li>
<li>The time at which an order is entered into the market, or any instructions provided that concern the time of order entry</li>
<li>Whether an order is placed by a person on behalf of another person, or by a person who is known to be a related party to that person, may have an interest in creating a false or misleading appearance of active trading in a security</li>
<li>Whether there appears to be a legitimate commercial reason in the submission of an order, unrelated to an intention to create a false or misleading appearance of active trading in a security</li>
<li>The volume of an order placed by a person</li>
<li>Whether a transaction, bid or offer that has executed or is in the market, would involve no change in beneficial ownership</li>
<li>The extent to which a person amends or cancels an instruction to purchase and/or sell a security, relative to the number of share transactions executed for that person</li>
</ul>
<h3 id="h_01J7W3GQ98G69M20EVSZQATJXB"> Wall St general regulatory requirements </h3>
The Securities Exchange Act prohibits market manipulation of security prices, with key provisions of the Act including Section 9(a) and Section 10(b). This includes; 
<ul>
<li>Creating “a false or misleading appearance of active trading in any security other than a government security, or a false or misleading appearance with respect to the market for any such security” (1) </li>
<li>Engaging in a series of transactions that creates “actual or apparent active trading” has a material impact on a security’s share price “for the purpose of inducing the purchase or sale” (A)</li>
<li>Knowingly spreading false information to materially impact a security’s share price (B).</li>
</ul>
The above is not an exhaustive list of the Securities Exchange Act provisions that apply to your trading activity. You’re encouraged to seek independent advice before placing orders if unsure as to whether particular conduct may breach the Act. 
The Nasdaq and NYSE Exchange Rules also impose requirements on Market Participants, in maintaining fair and orderly markets, through their conduct relating to order entry and trade execution. This includes the Market Conduct Rules from Nasdaq with application to Market Participants, and the NYSE’s Conduct Rules (Rules 2010 - 7470) for Market Participants.

General regulatory requirements

<h4 id="h_01HGW2VGJB24H4TWJN9NNHZ5WM">What is the difference between the CHESS model and the custodial model?</h4>
When you buy shares from a custodian platform, they’re held on your behalf under the investment platform’s name and HIN. This comes with cost savings for the company.  For all intents and purposes you still ‘own’ these shares, even if via a third party. But in the event of a custodian platform going under, this level of ownership becomes tricky and potential losses, or delays in claiming your shares, can occur.  As Stake is CHESS-sponsored, this means all shareholdings are directly registered under your name with the ASX. It’s the most assuring way to invest. Learn more about CHESS sponsorship and how it relates to share ownership <a href="https://hellostake.com/blog/stake-academy/what-is-chess">here</a>.

CHESS vs custodial model

As a HIN is created when a new account is created on a platform, it is possible to hold multiple HINs across multiple platforms. Each account type can only have one HIN associated with it. This means that if you have an Individual account and a Company account on Stake, you’ll have a different HIN for each.  If you’re registered with another CHESS-sponsored investing platform and wish to transfer those shares over to your newly-created Stake HIN, you can do that with a simple share transfer which you can initiate <a href="https://hellostake.com/transfer/aus">here</a>.  You can also move an existing HIN to Stake, which will replace the number you received when you opened your Stake AUS account. Instructions for that can be found <a href="https://hellostake.com/hin-transfer">here</a>. We may require further information to verify an existing HIN transfer.

Acquiring multiple HINs

A Securityholder Reference Number (SRN) is used to identify the ownership of issuer-sponsored shares. These are shares that are purchased outside of a platform and are held directly on a company’s share registry system. This means that only the company and the share registry have the record of title and ownership of shares.  Shareholders of issuer-sponsored shares will receive an Issuer-sponsored Holding Statement which contains information on the shares, including the SRN.  SRNs consist of 11 characters typically starting with the letter I. If you own issuer-sponsored shares and cannot find your SRN, we recommend you contact the company or share registry.  Please note that Stake doesn't currently support SRN transfers.

Securityholder reference numbers (SRN)

<h4 id="h_01HGW30VYC123876D2ZB3WP443">What is the ASX Anomalous Order Threshold (AOT)?</h4>
In an attempt to facilitate a reasonable and well-structured market, the ASX designates price ranges for all securities. This price range is known as the Anomalous Order Threshold (AOT).  If an investor attempts to place an order that falls outside the AOT, the ASX could reject this order – in which case the investor can place another order in line with the AOT price range.  Please note, the AOT for any given security is not constant and fluctuates throughout the trading day.

Anomalous order threshold (AOT) - price ranges

Cboe Australia (CXA) is an alternative securities and derivatives exchange to the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX). It offers a range of investment products on its trading platform that provides access to ASX-listed securities along with Cboe-exclusive ETFs and managed funds. As our partner broker FinClear is connected to the CXA trading venue, all or part of an order placed on Stake can be executed on Cboe. Generally, the one offering the best price will be where a trade is executed, in accordance with <a href="https://finclear.com.au/document/finclear-services-best-execution-policy/#:~:text=Best%20Execution%20arrangements%20for%20wholesale%20clients&amp;text=Unless%20otherwise%20directed%2C%20FinClear">FinClear’s Best Execution Policy</a>. You can learn more about Cboe Australia <a href="https://hellostake.com/blog/stake-academy/what-is-cboe-australia-cxa">here</a>.

CBOE (CXA - formerly Chi-X)

<h4 id="h_01HGW3MJ6QQZX5Q0DVW1B7E322">What is an OTC stock?</h4>
Over-The-Counter (OTC) stocks are securities that aren’t traded on major exchanges like the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) or Nasdaq. Hundreds of them are available on Stake Wall St. To learn more about OTC stocks, click <a href="https://hellostake.com/blog/stake-academy/stake-academy-otc-stocks">here</a>.  
<h4 id="h_01HGW3MJ6Q0RVQMFCGZAYEGXFB">How much does it cost to invest in OTCs?</h4>
Brokerage and regulatory fees for OTC stocks on Stake are the same as for trading other U.S. securities. Our current brokerage fee is US$3 on any trade up to US$30,000 (or 0.01% above US$30,000).   
<h4 id="h_01HGW3MJ6QW5TD98ZRD8TKQ9MN">Where can I view my OTC portfolio?</h4>
Your OTC stocks will be in your portfolio alongside your other U.S. holdings. They can be identified by the ‘OTC’ symbol on the right side of the screen when the stock is selected. 
<h4 id="h_01HGW3MJ6Q6DNZR1VJGWS4G7N5">Why is there only a LIMIT order available when trading OTC?</h4>
OTC stocks can only be traded using a LIMIT order type (not Market or Stop orders) because you can’t own a fractional amount of an OTC stock. Learn more about the different order types <a href="https://hellostake.com/support/wall-st/articles/35000152385">here</a>. 
<h4 id="h_01HGW3MJ6QTDZXHHAKK1XPMH4J">Things to Consider</h4>
It’s important to recognise that OTC stocks tend to have lower liquidity. Entering and exiting positions may be more difficult if traders are looking for specific prices. Lower liquidity is also associated with increased volatility. If a company does not meet the requirements to list on a normal exchange, its securities can be traded via OTC markets, but may still be subject to some regulation by the SEC (relevant to U.S. securities only). The <a href="https://www.sec.gov/reportspubs/investor-publications/investorpubsmicrocapstock">SEC</a> provides more details of things to be aware of when trading in the over-the-counter markets.

Over the counter (OTC) stocks

<h4 id="h_01HGW32ZQ5MMEW6FWKB80G2BHD">What are circuit breakers &amp; trading halts?</h4>
When markets become extremely volatile, a market-wide circuit breaker can halt trading across all U.S. exchanges and venues. During a trading halt, all buying or selling is temporarily suspended. All orders will be queued to be executed only once the halt is lifted.  These halts are triggered at three circuit breaker thresholds, based on a predefined % increase or decrease against the previous day’s closing price of the S&amp;P 500. The three circuit breaker levels:
<ul>
<li>Level 1: +/- 7% </li>
<li>Level 2: +/- 13% </li>
<li>Level 3: +/- 20% </li>
</ul>
<h4 id="h_01HGW32ZQ5643AR4SCPJ4C45ZY">Times of circuit breakers </h4>
<ul>
<li>A Level 1 and Level 2 breach can be triggered between 9:30am and 3:25pm.</li>
<li>A Level 3 breach can be triggered at any time. </li>
<li>A Level 1 and Level 2 breach halts trading for a minimum of 15 minutes. </li>
<li>A Level 3 breach halts trading for the remainder of the trading day. </li>
</ul>
<h4 id="h_01HGW32ZQ5P38W9NXM3CXWGXB6">Orders during a halt </h4>
You can continue to use Stake and place orders, but these will not be executed until the market re-opens. We cannot guarantee execution in full or in part.    When a halt occurs, all non-executed orders will remain in a pending state until they’re cleared, cancelled or expired. You can cancel these pending orders at any time during the halt.

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Holder identification numbers (HIN)

Where can I find my HIN?