EF Hutton product launch plagued by website problems

EF Hutton America announced a set of financial products Wednesday afternoon, including online investment and trading options, although website problems plagued the company’s launch throughout the day.

The company will offer investment services with a low fixed fee.

“The services are no commission investing and no commission trading,” CEO Christopher Daniels said.

Local leaders hope that the company’s business model succeeds and can lead to new jobs and further investment in downtown Springfield. The company has pledged to invest $22 million and create at least 400 jobs over five years, and has purchased two buildings in the city’s core.

EF Hutton’s America website describing its services and allowing customers to sign up had a countdown clock to a 6 a.m. Wednesday launch. It opened briefly Wednesday morning, but went offline with a new countdown a short time later.

The site returned for a few minutes about 2 p.m. Wednesday, then went down again. The countdown was reset several times throughout the day until it disappeared and a message was posted briefly citing technical difficulties.

Despite the problems, Daniels said the company’s services are unique in the industry.

It will offer three levels of investment services — a standard service with low fees for self-directed customers; a premium level for investors with portfolios over $250,000; and institutional for large investors with complex needs.

“There are many investors that have a discount broker for trading and they’ve got another account with an investment adviser at a different firm,” Daniels said. “What we’re saying is investors can have the best of both worlds. They can have one account with EF Hutton …”