Family members each applying in their own name, with their own decision and their own money, is permitted — and your household's chances multiply by the number of people. Children can take part too at brokers that allow accounts for under-18s.
Borrowing a family member's name and trading on their account yourself is prohibited. That line is the thing to understand before anything else.
Most IPO lotteries work on one ticket per person. In a fully equal draw the ticket belongs to the account holder regardless of how much they applied for, so a couple applying separately doubles the entries and a family of four quadruples them.
There is no problem with everyone applying for the same listing at the same broker. In practice, adding family accounts is often more effective than adding money.
The account belongs to that person. It is genuinely in their name.
That person decides and acts. They make the decision to apply and to buy, and they operate the account. For a child, a parent or guardian acts on their behalf.
The money is theirs. The purchase is funded from that person's own money.
Anything missing one of these — a husband using his wife's password to apply without her, a parent running a child's account with the parent's own money — counts as trading under a borrowed name and is prohibited by brokers' own rules. Being found out can mean restrictions on the account.
Giving a family member the money as a gift and having them apply themselves is fine as a transaction, but depending on the amount it may attract gift tax. Above 1.1 million yen a year, check with a tax office or an accountant.
This differs sharply between brokers. Among those confirmed on this site: Matsui Securities allows accounts for under-18s to enter the lottery, and requires no deposit either, which makes it convenient for family applications. Daiwa Connect allows applications through its teen accounts, covering lower secondary school age to 17, converting automatically to an adult account at 18.
On the other side, Nomura's online service rules exclude under-18s from the lottery, and Daiwa does not open online trading accounts to minors at all, so online applications are not possible there.
Most other brokers will open an account for a minor but do not state clearly whether IPO applications are permitted, so confirm on their own site before opening one.
Opening an account for a minor requires the consent of a parent or guardian, who in most cases must also hold an account at the same broker.
Every account handles its own paperwork after a win. If four family members apply and two win, the money must be in each of those two accounts separately. For a listing where winning across the board would be unaffordable, apply with fewer people.
Penalties for declining apply per account. At brokers that block you for a period after declining a win, a family member's account is treated exactly the same way.
Multiple accounts in one name are consolidated. Holding two accounts at the same broker under the same name does not increase your chances, and most brokers do not allow it in the first place. What multiplies your entries is the number of people, not the number of accounts.
Applying in each family member's own name, by their own decision, with their own money is permitted, and the entries multiply by the number of people. Borrowing someone's name is not. Children can take part at some brokers but not others. And apply only within what your household could actually pay for if everyone won at once.
Nothing here is investment advice. Shares can and do open below their offer price.
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