Extended hours and market hours

Traditionally, the US stock markets open from 9:30 am (Eastern Standard Time - EST or New York Time) to 4:00 pm EST. At Hapi we offer you extended trading hours where you can place trades before the market opens (pre-market) or after it closes (post-market).

Pre-Market: Opens 30 minutes before the market opens, that is 9:00 am EST.

Post-Market: We extend the hours of operation 2 hours until 6:00 pm EST.

These are an additional two and a half hours of market access every day.

Then the market orders are divided into:

Pre-Market: 9 am to 9:30 am EST

Regular Market Hours: 9:30 am to 4 pm EST

Post-Market: 4 pm to 6 pm EST

In extended market hours, the prices of a stock are the real-time prices.

Keep in mind!

You must consider the following points before doing operations in extended hours (pre and post market).

Lower Liquidity Risk

Liquidity refers to the ability of market participants to buy and sell securities. Usually, the more orders available in a market, the greater the liquidity. Liquidity is important because when it is higher, it is easier to buy or sell securities, and thus it is more likely that a more competitive price will be paid or received for those securities.

The extended trading hours tend to have less liquidity (compared to regular market hours) and therefore it is possible that your orders are only partially executed or not executed at all.

Risk of Higher Volatility

Volatility refers to the price changes that shares have when they are traded. Generally, the greater the volatility, the greater the price changes.

In extended hours there is usually greater volatility than in regular market hours. This means that your order may only partially execute, not execute, or receive a lower price than you would receive during regular trading hours.

Price Change Risk

The prices of the securities traded during extended hours may not reflect the prices of the end of the session of the regular market hours, or from the opening from the next morning. As a result, you may receive a less favorable price than what you could get during regular market hours.

Risk of Markets with Different Prices

Depending on the system that each provider uses to buy and sell securities during extended hours or the time of the day, the prices shown in a particular extended hours trading system may not reflect the same prices from other systems that operate simultaneously.

You may receive a different price than an extended hours trading system that operates on another one.

Risk of New Announcements

It is common for announcements or news to be made during extended hours, which can affect the price of the securities. It is usual for financial information and other important results to be announced outside of regular market hours.

When trading extended hours, these announcements can be done during trading and, when combined with lower liquidity and higher volatility, can cause an exaggerated and unsustainable effect on the price of a security.

Risk of Wider Spreads

The spread refers to the difference between the price at which you can buy a security and the price at which you can sell it. The lower liquidity and higher volatility of extended hours can mean larger differences between the buy and sell price for a particular security.


The content in Hapi and in particular in this section is for informational purposes only, it shouldn’t under any circumstances be considered as advice, consultancy or recommendations on investments in securities or investment strategies. Every investment involves risk, including the possible loss of capital. Past performance doesn’t guarantee future results.

If you have any additional questions about hours of operation, reach to us at contacto@imhapi.app we are here to help you!