Common questions

BUNKER - property of Smartadvisor LLC (“BUNKER”)- is an automated investing platform, focused on consumers in LATAM. We want anyone in LATAM to be able to download our app, easily register and transfer the funds they want to invest and access a customized and diversified portfolio (based on ETFs); with convenient and transparent pricing. Smartadvisor LLC is an SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) registered investment adviser, (CRD number # 319690). When you invest with BUNKER, you are investing on the US stock market and your securities are held in the US. Smartadvisor LLC (“BUNKER”) is a company incorporated and regulated in the United States of America. It is the client's responsibility to ascertain the legal requirements that the current legal framework applicable in its country of residence establishes about the services provided by BUNKER, as well as to ascertain whether the current legal framework applicable in its country of residence allows using the services provided by BUNKER. This is not an offer, solicitation of an offer, or advice to buy or sell securities, or open a brokerage account in any jurisdiction where BUNKER is not registered, or BUNKER operations contravene local laws.

BUNKER is an SEC Registered Investment Adviser (CRD number # 319690), regulated under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940. SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) is a federal agency from the United States with a stated mission of protecting investors, to maintain fair, orderly, and efficient markets.

All client assets are held with Apex Clearing Corporation, a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”), and Securities Investor Protection Corporation (“SIPC”), which protects securities of its members' customers for up to US$ 500,000 (including US$ 250,000 in cash). SIPC protects the custody function of the broker dealer, which means that SIPC works to restore to customers their securities and cash that are in their accounts when the brokerage firm liquidation begins. SIPC does not protect against the decline in value of securities.

Your excess cash balances that Apex sweeps to a Program Bank within the Sweep Program, are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) up to a standard maximum amount in accordance with the FDIC's rules. Apex has purchased an additional insurance policy through a group of London Underwriters to supplement SIPC protection. For additional information regarding SIPC coverage, including a brochure, please contact SIPC at (202) 371-8300 or visit www.sipc.org. Apex has purchased an additional insurance policy through a group of London Underwriters to supplement SIPC protection. This additional insurance policy becomes available to customers in the event that SIPC limits are exhausted and provides protection for securities and cash up to certain limits.

To apply for a BUNKER account you'll need the following requirements: Be 18 years or older Verify your identity with an actual valid photo ID Check available jurisdictions here A smartphone camera is preferred in order to verify your identity and prevent fraud. We are working to make our platform available for multiple systems and devices. To check compatibility you can click here.

You can deposit funds into your BUNKER account through ACH and Wire transfers from your personal account at another financial institution. You can transfer funds through our platforms at any time but in general they will take up to 3 business days to be available at your BUNKER account. Local ACHs can be pulled directly in from your bank account, you can bring your funds at another institution through our app. On the other hand, Wire transfers must be pushed through the original financial institution, you will only give us a notice.

It's your money. You can always withdraw money from your BUNKER account. As with everything at BUNKER, you can initiate a withdrawal yourself through our platform features. You can transfer out cash through ACH or Wire transfers. If you do not have an outstanding cash balance, some securities from your portfolio would have to be sold before the transfer can be made. Time depends on the type of transfer and the destination, but they usually take from 1 to 3 business days. Also, some outgoing transfers may be subject to additional costs.

In general, BUNKER requires a minimum investment of USD 500 to open an account. We continue working to lower the minimum investment necessary to access our service. Please check the fee schedule below.

BUNKER offers its clients an investment product and the compensation for uninvested cash in the account (cash sweep program). Each service has its specific pricing scheme.

BUNKER charges its clients a one single fee for the investment service based on the value of the invested assets, as detailed in the table below.

On the other hand, BUNKER applies an annual fee of 0.5% on the balance that clients maintain in the high-yield cash account. This fee is not applicable to cash within each investment portfolio allocated to cash.
The fees are automatically debited from clients' accounts at the end of each month, based on the account balance of each client in each service.

Temporary promotion for small accounts

BUNKER has a transparent, competitive pricing scheme aligned with clients' goals. However, our prices are not competitive for accounts with low balances. In order to promote access for small investors to the market, BUNKER has a temporary pricing promotion scheme for small accounts.
During the first 6 months after opening, accounts with balances less than $8,000 are subject to the same pricing scheme as accounts with balances between $8,000 and $25,000 — 1.50% for invested money and 0.5% for interest-bearing cash. After that period, a unique monthly fee of $10 ($120 annually) is applied to these accounts.

Single fee

BUNKER charges its clients one single fee for its services; that is the company's sole source of income. BUNKER does not charge clients additional fees for opening or maintaining an investment account, for the purchase or sale of assets, or for deposits or withdrawals. Additionally, BUNKER does not receive incentives for the sale of third-party products or services, nor compensation for directing buy or sell orders.

By answering a simple set of questions, we can help you pick one of our powerful data-driven portfolios. Our portfolios contain diversified ETFs selected after deep data research across more than 4000 options. We provide all-in fully automated investment. While you live your life, we take care of your investments by rebalancing, reinvesting dividends and periodically reviewing portfolios.

An ETF is called an exchange-traded fund because it's traded on an exchange just like stocks are. The price of an ETF’s shares will change throughout the trading day as the shares are bought and sold on the market. This is unlike mutual funds, which are not traded on an exchange, and which trade only once per day after the markets close. Additionally, ETFs tend to be more cost-effective and more liquid compared to mutual funds. An ETF is a type of fund that holds multiple underlying assets, rather than only one like a stock does. Because there are multiple assets within an ETF, they can be a popular choice for diversification. ETFs can thus contain many types of investments, including stocks, commodities, bonds, or a mixture of investment types. An ETF can own hundreds or thousands of stocks across various industries, or it could be isolated to one particular industry or sector. Some funds focus on only U.S. offerings, while others have a global outlook. For example, banking-focused ETFs would contain stocks of various banks across the industry. An ETF is a marketable security, meaning it has a share price that allows it to be easily bought and sold on exchanges throughout the day.

For the moment we only offer our own built portfolios as investment options. We are a robo advisor and therefore base our investment in diversified portfolios specially designed to maximize returns by minimizing risk.

Yes, although we designed our platform for you to navigate without help we are always available to assist you. We know sometimes it is just better to receive human help, and that is why we can give you such support.

When clients transfer funds to their BUNKER account, they will be initiating transactions for the purchase of proportional interests in the available portfolios of ETFs, in an amount that corresponds to their asset allocation, except for any amounts the client decides to separate into the Cash Reserve feature. This feature allows to separate a client defined cash amount from being invested in the corresponding portfolio. Clients have the option of reserving cash when initiating a funding transaction as well as any other time as they hold funds in their BUNKER account.