Bamboo vs Trove vs Risevest vs Hisa: best app for US stocks in Nigeria

On published fees, Hisa and Trove tie as the cheapest of the four, both at 1% on a US stock trade, against Bamboo's 1.5% each way. Risevest doesn't charge per trade at all. You pay an annual fee on what you hold instead, 1% a year under $1,000 and 0.5% a year above that. And Chaka isn't on the list because Chaka became Hisa in June 2026. Daya Stocks charges 0.25% per trade from $1, against Hisa's and Trove's 1% and Bamboo's 1.5% each way. It's a tokenised product, so it isn't one of the four compared here.

This compares the four Nigerian apps people actually shortlist for US stocks, on what each one charges, what you end up owning, and what it costs to get your money back out. The Trove and Risevest fees came off their own pages on 14 September 2026, and the rest on 10 September 2026. For the wider picture, how to invest in US stocks from Nigeria covers the mechanics.

What happened to Chaka, and what should you use now?

Chaka rebranded to Hisa in June 2026. Existing Chaka users keep their portfolios and account histories, and the app updates to Hisa rather than closing. So if you're comparing Chaka against Bamboo or Trove, the app you're comparing is now called Hisa.

Two details matter more than the name change:

• Chaka Technologies Limited still exists as the licensed entity. Hisa's own site says Nigerian equities trading is facilitated by Chaka Technologies Limited, the SEC-licensed digital sub-broker, through Citi Investment Capital Limited. The brand went, the licence stayed.
• Hisa and Risevest are connected. Hisa's Kenyan trading runs through RiseVest East Africa Limited, per Hisa's own disclosures. So two of the four names on this page sit in the same group, which is worth knowing if you were planning to spread money across both.

The rebrand was covered by Nairametrics and TheCable at the time, and Hisa now runs Nigerian, Kenyan and US markets in one app.

How much does each app charge for a US stock trade?

Hisa charges a flat 1% on every trade across every market. Trove charges 1.00% on foreign shares and 1.35% on local shares, both before regulatory fees. Bamboo charges 1.5% when you buy and 1.5% again when you sell, with a $1 minimum each time.

Risevest doesn't charge per trade at all. You pay an annual fee on everything you hold instead, 1% a year under $1,000 and 0.5% a year above that, so it's a cost that comes round every year rather than one you pay when you buy.

On a $500 US trade, Bamboo's 1.5% is $7.50 to buy and $7.50 again when you sell, so $15 on a round trip. Hisa's 1% is $5 each way, so $10. That $5 gap is small on one trade and becomes the whole difference if you trade often. Bamboo's own US stock fee page and Hisa's site carry both numbers.

What do you actually own on each app?

Bamboo, Trove and Hisa all put real shares in your name through a licensed broker, so what you hold is a share, or a fraction of one. Risevest is different: you're buying into a managed portfolio that Risevest picks and runs, and you can't choose individual stocks at all.

The practical differences that follow from that:

1. On Bamboo, Trove and Hisa you decide what to buy and when. Your gains and losses are yours, stock by stock.
2. On Risevest you decide how much to put in and which portfolio, and Risevest does the rest. Its own FAQ says plainly that users can't trade or pick securities themselves.
3. Dividends are handled differently. Bamboo pays dividends as cash and notes on its fee page that the US government takes 30% withholding tax on dividends paid to non-US investors.

None of that makes one model better. It makes them different products, and Risevest belongs on your shortlist only if you'd rather not pick stocks. If you would rather pick, Risevest is the wrong tool no matter what it costs.

What does it cost to get money in and out?

Bamboo is the only one of the four that publishes this in full. Funding a Bamboo wallet from a Nigerian bank costs a 100 naira processing fee, converting naira to dollars costs 0.5% with a $1 minimum and a $5 maximum, and withdrawing to a Nigerian bank costs 45 naira. Bamboo's minimum funding is $1.

Two things worth checking before you pick on trading fee alone:

• The conversion cost usually beats the trading fee. On a $500 deposit, Bamboo's 0.5% conversion is capped at $5, which is roughly what a whole Hisa trade costs. How the naira exchange rate works explains why the rate you get and the rate you see aren't the same number.
• Bamboo charges nothing to hold. Its charges page states there's no fee for holding stocks or leaving funds in the wallet, which matters if you buy and sit still.

Trove's public minimum to get started is $10 or 1,000 naira, per its FAQ. Risevest's FAQ says you can start from $1, withdraw as often as you like, and pay no early withdrawal penalty.

Which of these apps should you use?

Hisa and Trove tie as the cheapest of the four to trade, both at 1%. Bamboo is the most transparent about total cost, Trove has the widest instrument range, and Risevest is the only one that manages the money for you. Which one wins depends entirely on how you plan to invest.

• Trading regularly and watching cost: Hisa or Trove. Both charge 1%, so there's nothing between them on the trading fee. Hisa adds Nigerian and Kenyan markets in the same app, and Trove's 1% is foreign shares only, with local shares at 1.35%.
• Buying and holding, and you want to know the full bill up front: Bamboo. It costs more per trade, and it's the only one that publishes funding, conversion, withdrawal and holding costs where you can read them before you sign up.
• You want ETFs, bonds and a wider instrument list: Trove. Its foreign-share fee matches Hisa's at 1%, so the wider range doesn't cost you more per trade.
• You don't want to pick stocks: Risevest. You pay 1% a year under $1,000 and 0.5% above on everything you hold, rather than a fee each time you trade. On $1,000 held for a year that's $10, and it comes round again the next year.

Where does Daya Stocks fit?

Daya Stocks isn't one of the four above, because it's a tokenised product rather than a brokerage. It charges 0.25% per trade and you can start from $1. You hold a token that tracks the share instead of the share itself, and there's more on what that means further down.

Are these apps licensed in Nigeria?

All four operate through licensed brokers rather than holding your shares directly. Hisa runs Nigerian trades through Chaka Technologies Limited, an SEC-licensed digital sub-broker, and Citi Investment Capital Limited, an NGX dealing member. Trove uses Sigma Securities and ARM Securities, both SEC-registered.

On the US side, Trove names DriveWealth and Alpaca Securities, and Hisa names Alpaca Securities, all FINRA members. What that gives you is a chain of regulated intermediaries between you and the share, and it's worth reading each app's own disclosure rather than taking a comparison page's word for it, this one included.

Do these apps publish their fees?

All four publish a headline fee now. Bamboo charges 1.5% each way, Hisa a flat 1%, and Trove 1.00% on foreign shares on its Nigeria pricing page. Risevest publishes an annual fee on what you hold, 1% under $1,000 and 0.5% above, rather than a fee per trade.

The trading fee is one line of the bill, though. Funding, currency conversion, withdrawal and moving your holdings to another broker all cost money too, and Bamboo sets all of those out on a public page. On the others you'll find at least some of them only once you're inside the app.

Daya Stocks charges 0.25% per trade from $1, and both figures are on the page before you open an account. A cost you can't check before you sign up is a cost you can't compare, and that's real money to you whichever app it belongs to.

What about tokenised stocks?

Tokenised stocks are the newer model, and Daya Stocks is one of them. Instead of a broker holding a share for you, you hold a token that tracks the share's value, which is what makes round-the-clock trading possible where a real stock exchange is shut.

The trade-off is ownership. With Bamboo, Trove or Hisa you own a share, or a fraction of one, held by a licensed broker. With a tokenised product you own exposure to what that share does. On Daya Stocks specifically, tokens can't currently be moved to an external wallet, so the position stays inside the app. How to invest in US stocks from Nigeria sets out how tokenised equity and custody work in more detail, and Nigeria's money rules covers where tax lands on gains from US stocks.