# Where to buy from - what Stock Exchange, Domicile, Country, etc **URL:** \ **Category:** Investing / Portfolios\ **Created:** [September 3, 2019, 2:51pm UTC](https://forum.mustachianpost.com/t/where-to-buy-from-what-stock-exchange-domicile-country-etc/2481 "2019-09-03T14:51:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![notme123](https://forum.mustachianpost.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/n/779978/32.png) [@notme123](https://forum.mustachianpost.com/u/notme123)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2019, 2:51pm UTC](https://forum.mustachianpost.com/t/where-to-buy-from-what-stock-exchange-domicile-country-etc/2481/1 "2019-09-03T14:51:22Z")
Hi all, Although I have been investing for more than a year, there one think I keep on asking myself. And now that I switch to IB I believe its time to shed some light on this, once and for all. Questions are usually around the domicile of a fund, the country of the stock exchange, the curency and how to make choises. The following is my thought process that exposes the questions I have, some that I have already answered, some i cannot not. But I hope this will help me or others. Example : I want to buy VT (Vanguard Total World ETF). This seems to be the official page : [VT-Vanguard Total World Stock ETF | Vanguard](https://investor.vanguard.com/etf/profile/VT), but its already not clear: 1. Why can’t I see, on this page, the ISIN identifier ? I am clearly missing something, so I deeper. I also find [http://www.morningstar.co.uk/uk/etf/snapshot/snapshot.aspx?id=0P0000G5T2](http://www.morningstar.co.uk/uk/etf/snapshot/snapshot.aspx?id=0P0000G5T2). This has the expected ISIN number, that is US9220427424. Starts with US, so I guess at this time, this is a US domiciled fund and is traded on ARCA (NY stock exchange) 1. Is the ISIN number unique per IndexFund/Stock Exchange combination ? Can there be the same Index Fund on another Exchange, since I cannot trade on ARCA ? Then, to answer my question, I search for VWRL on Degiro. I find 3 ETFs, on the main stock exchanges : SWX (CHF), EAM (EUR), LSE (GBP). All with the same ISIN! So there can be same ETF, same ISIN (IE00B3RBWM25), but listed on different stock exchanges, and with differnet denominations! then the question is… 1. Does it matter Where the stock exchange is from, sice the ETF is the same ? The real issue as far as I know, regarding taxes, is the domicile of the ETF, not the country of the stock exchange or the currency. 2. Then, the next important question is, how do you make a choise ? I have currently EUR, CHF and USD and I can invest, with IB, pretty much anywhere. Is it ok to ignore the initial currency exchange so that I go to the “right” one ? I hope I make sense, and also I hope other people have the same issues as I do 🙂 Thanks! Vlad ---
**Author:** ![male](https://forum.mustachianpost.com/user_avatar/forum.mustachianpost.com/male/32/833_2.png) [@male](https://forum.mustachianpost.com/u/male)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2019, 4:47pm UTC](https://forum.mustachianpost.com/t/where-to-buy-from-what-stock-exchange-domicile-country-etc/2481/2 "2019-09-03T16:47:47Z")
> [@notme123](#): > > Why can’t I see, on this page, the ISIN identifier ? Because in US the CUSIP is more widely used. And [ISIN](https://www.isin.org/isin/) is country-code + CUSIP + single-digit-check. > [@notme123](#): > > Is the ISIN number unique per IndexFund/Stock Exchange combination ? per Index/Fund > [@notme123](#): > > Can there be the same Index Fund on another Exchange, since I cannot trade on ARCA ? Yes, same instrument (identified by ISIN) can be traded via multiple exchanges - always via the same ISIN. > [@notme123](#): > > Does it matter Where the stock exchange is from, sice the ETF is the same ? I’m guessing theoretically there might be a difference, in terms of how the security is tracked by your broker. Practically the main difference is probably the costs: - different exchanges have different liquidity and thus different spreads. Spreads aren’t to be neglected. - also, brokers have different fees for different exchanges. Plus there’s taxes for some. - and different exchanges will have the same security offered in different currencies. So if you’re after a particular currency that might restrict the available security-exchange-broker combinations. > [@notme123](#): > > The real issue as far as I know, regarding taxes, is the domicile of the ETF, not the country of the stock exchange or the currency. That’s certainly one of the main long-term aspect, agreed. > [@notme123](#): > > Then, the next important question is, how do you make a choise ? I have currently EUR, CHF and USD and I can invest, with IB, pretty much anywhere. Is it ok to ignore the initial currency exchange so that I go to the “right” one ? I’d say so, yes. Generally speaking it depends on which broker you use. For some it might be prohibitively expensive to do FX. For IB it is cheap, so it doesn’t matter much. In this case I’d look at the most liquid exchange. But essentially it is based on a formula which is something like: _spread_ + _exchange\_fee_ + _FX\_fee_ - but liquidity is an aspect that might become handy in turbulent times, so that is probably more relevant than strict fees. Mind you, the dividends are typically paid out in the base currency of the fund, not necessarily in the one you bought it in. So if they don’t match, you would have to eventually do another FX (but that might not matter much again, as in IB’s case) ---
**Author:** ![paul](https://forum.mustachianpost.com/user_avatar/forum.mustachianpost.com/paul/32/3289_2.png) [@paul](https://forum.mustachianpost.com/u/paul)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2019, 5:23pm UTC](https://forum.mustachianpost.com/t/where-to-buy-from-what-stock-exchange-domicile-country-etc/2481/3 "2019-09-03T17:23:44Z")
Great answer male! I agree with everything but I’m not sure I agree with this: > [@male](#): > > liquidity is an aspect that might become handy in turbulent times, so that is probably more relevant than strict fees. Liquidity of ETFs is different than liquidity of stocks. The ETF issuer can just create shares to continue tracking the index. I’m not sure that there is anything other than spread + exchange\_fee + FX\_fee to consider. ---
**Author:** ![male](https://forum.mustachianpost.com/user_avatar/forum.mustachianpost.com/male/32/833_2.png) [@male](https://forum.mustachianpost.com/u/male)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2019, 6:11pm UTC](https://forum.mustachianpost.com/t/where-to-buy-from-what-stock-exchange-domicile-country-etc/2481/4 "2019-09-03T18:11:41Z")
> [@paul](#): > > Liquidity of ETFs is different than liquidity of stocks. Right - cant compare it with stocks. > [@paul](#): > > The ETF issuer can just create shares to continue tracking the index. Thats another aspect though. I was referring to a crash where the ETF/market maker switches to a huge spread to wait things out (this does and will happen). If you’re on some side-exchange that’s it: you have to pay the spread (if you want/need to trade in those moments). If you’re on the main market (there usually is a main one) you might get better offers. ---
**Author:** ![weirded](https://forum.mustachianpost.com/user_avatar/forum.mustachianpost.com/weirded/32/14916_2.png) [@weirded](https://forum.mustachianpost.com/u/weirded)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2019, 8:38pm UTC](https://forum.mustachianpost.com/t/where-to-buy-from-what-stock-exchange-domicile-country-etc/2481/5 "2019-09-03T20:38:22Z")
> [@notme123](#): > > Does it matter Where the stock exchange is from, sice the ETF is the same ? Hi @notme123 you can also have a look at [this thread](https://forum.mustachianpost.com/t/comparing-vanguard-all-world-in-lse-vs-six/138) on the topic ---
**Author:** ![Fizzy](https://forum.mustachianpost.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/f/e99b99/32.png) [@Fizzy](https://forum.mustachianpost.com/u/Fizzy)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2020, 12:16pm UTC](https://forum.mustachianpost.com/t/where-to-buy-from-what-stock-exchange-domicile-country-etc/2481/6 "2020-10-07T12:16:32Z")
I apologize for digging out this old thread. I intend to buy iShares Core MSCI EM IMI UCITS ETF USD (Acc) on Degiro. There are basically two options to purchase it: SIX in USD or EAM in EUR. Is there (cost-wise) any difference? - Spread: Roughly the same. EAM seems to be a bit better. - Forex fee: The same because my home currency is CHF, i.e. exchange is needed anyway. - Stock exchange fee: SIX is free, EAM is 2.50 EUR per year (already covered due other ETFs I own). To sum up, there is no preferable choice? Or do I miss something?