Rakuten Securities will stretch US stock trading hours for its Japanese clients to as much as 16 hours a day from June 22, adding a session that runs after the American market closes so customers can react to earnings and news released overnight, the broker said today (Monday).
The new after-market window runs from 5 a.m. to 9 a.m. Japan time during US daylight saving time, sitting on top of the regular overnight session that ends at 5 a.m. The company added pre-market US trading in January, which took its hours to 12, and the latest step pushes the maximum to 16.
Limit Orders Only in the New Post-Close Window
The after-market session will accept limit orders only, and cover US stocks, American depositary receipts and exchange-traded funds the broker handles, excluding over-the-counter products, according to the company.
From June 14, the firm will add two order types for US stocks, IFD (if done) orders and trailing orders, which let clients pre-set a sell against a buy and move a stop-loss automatically as the price rises. Rakuten said the tools let customers take profits or cut losses while asleep or at work.
A points promotion for US stock trades, spot or margin, is set to begin June 15, with details to follow on the firm’s website.
A Step Toward Round-the-Clock US Trading
The after-market push is the next rung in a longer plan. Parent company Rakuten Securities Holdings invested in 24X US Holdings in May 2025, a Delaware fintech building toward 23-hour US equity trading, and the broker has said it wants to bring those hours to Japanese clients as soon as it can.
24X National Exchange, the first SEC-approved venue of its kind, began trading in October 2025 from 4 a.m. to 8 p.m. New York time. Rakuten, which describes itself as a “partner in asset building,” has tied its US roadmap to that longer access.
Brokers Race to Stretch the US Trading Day
The move reflects a wider contest to extend the US session, driven largely by demand from Asia, where Wall Street trades in the dead of night. Nasdaq has said it aims to offer 24-hour trading in the second half of 2026, pending regulatory sign-off, which would put it behind 24X.
Bigger venues have moved too. The New York Stock Exchange laid out a plan in October 2024 to run equities on its Arca platform for 22 hours a day, while Cboe Global Markets said in February 2025 it would offer 24-hour, five-day trading on its EDGX exchange. London Stock Exchange Group has also weighed round-the-clock trading.
Tied to a Broader US Stock Push
Rakuten has leaned hard on US equities as Japanese brokers fight for younger investors. It made domestic cash trading commission-free in October 2023 and recently topped 14 million accounts.
It has also added AI research, with clients generating 3 million AI stock reports in a day after a mid-2025 launch, and late last month said it would offer bookbuilding for the SpaceX IPO, letting clients apply for shares before the listing.
Rivals SBI Securities and Monex are pressing on US and crypto products too, in a market where domestic equity commissions have already gone to zero. For now, Rakuten’s after-market session stays limited to limit orders and a set list of securities, and the firm has not said when it expects to reach the 23-hour goal.
This article was written by Damian Chmiel at www.financemagnates.com.BrokersRead More
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