Whether you’re trading through Cash App or you’re doing so after hours on Webull, it’s a good idea to know how long your funds will take to settle, especially if you’re looking to get paid out fast. Unfortunately, this is often pretty unclear, so we’re going to be taking a look at how long you can expect it to take.
The average time that it takes for funds to settle when you’re using Webull is two business days, though this is not the case for options. You can expect an options trade to settle within one day of making it, provided you made it during market hours.
Of course, there’s a bit more nuance to the matter than what we’re able to explain in such a brief paragraph. If you’re looking to learn more about how long it will take your Webull cash to settle, bear with us and we’ll go through all of the details and nomenclature that you should know.
Webull How Long for Cash to Settle
In most cases, you can expect your Webull trades to settle within one or two business days, depending on the type of trade that you made. In the case of stock trades, you’ll have to wait two business days from the time that you made the trade for the cash to become available.
On the other hand, if you’re trading options on Webull, you’ll only have to wait a single day for your money to become available. While this is a general rule, you can get a more specific idea of when your money will be at your disposal by taking a look at the details of a particular trade.
See the Exact Settlement Date
When you’re looking at Webull trade details, you can find the day that your money will settle under the “Settlement date.” This will ensure that you know exactly when your funds will settle so that you don’t end up withdrawing money through Bank of America or Zelle before you have it available, potentially incurring additional fees.
How Are Settlement Dates Decided?
It’s a good idea to know a thing or two about the terms that are used to describe when the cash will settle. Settlement dates predate the internet, and the settlement date is essentially the day that the cash is exchanged for the securities after they have been purchased or sold to another party.
Before we had digital trading, it could take a while for settlements to come through. Some people would wait for a couple of weeks before they could expect to see the money in their bank account for a trade. However, time and technology has shortened the gap between making a trade and getting your money.
As trading was computerized, settlement periods dropped to seven business days. After that, they dropped to five business days, and then they dropped even further to three business days. Since 2017, people have been able to wait two days for their settlements, making trades less risky for the parties involved.
The main factor that led to the change in settlement dates was the difference in how well computers were able to compute over time. If a computer has additional processing power, it can handle the transaction in a shorter period of time, and that’s what’s led to the current standard that we have.
As for the future, many people in the finance industry believe that there will be a day when we’ll see the settlement date of stocks drop to just a single business day. It’s possible that we’ll even say same-day settlements within our lifetimes, though that matter is a little more up in the air.
Whether you’re shorting on Webull, buying, or selling, note that the settlement date won’t change dramatically based on the platform that you’re using. Since this is a universal standard, you won’t see a difference in the time that it will take your trades to settle when using Webull compared to something like Robinhood.
Settlement Date Terminology
Another thing to account for are the terms that are used to denote settlement dates. In the United States, the settlement date for stock trades is defined as T+2. T is when you made the trade and +2 represents the two business days that you have to wait for your funds to settle after the trade.
Compare this to the previous settlement systems, which were T+3, T+5, T+7 and more. Keep in mind that the number represents business days. Holidays and weekends are excluded from this, so you’ll have to wait for four days for the funds to become available if you make a trade on Friday.
Another thing to consider is that the settlement time can vary based on when you’re making your trades. An interesting thing to note is that America wasn’t the first country to switch over to the T+2 standard. By 2014, this was the standard adopted by most European countries.
Australia followed Europe in 2016, one year before America did. When 2017 rolled around, Mexico and Canada followed in America’s footsteps and also adopted the T+2 model. If you’re looking to get your money faster than the settlement date, there are a few things that you can do.
Settlement Dates for Options
We’ve already mentioned that options work in a T+1 timeframe, allowing you to get your money within one business day. A call option will give you the chance to be more bullish because you’ll be able to get your settlement much faster. On the other hand, if you’re feeling more bearish, you’ll want to opt for a put option instead.
Always plan ahead for your settlement dates and don’t put yourself in a position where you’re reliant on money to come through on an exact date. This has a way of making it so that holidays and weekends get the best of you, often putting you in a compromising position.
However, if you’re cutting it close to the wire, it’s a good idea to know exactly how long it’s going to take you, and Webull makes it pretty easy to see.