Quote:
Originally Posted by bizaro86
If you're planning to do anything complex or trading frequently (other than penny stocks), it's pretty hard to beat interactive brokers. $0.01 per share commission (with a % cap for low $ stops). Plus the ability to enter complex option trades as a single order so it only fills if you get the whole trade.
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I really don't recommend these types of accounts to dabble with... For complex transactions and options, options are far cheaper than the actual shares themselves. You might save a few bucks on a few transactions, but overall, the other headaches aren't really worth it IMO. I feel like these types of accounts are far too complex for the average user. I'd also suggest doing proper research before signing up with one of these types of accounts. Some of them seem sketchy as hell.
I know a guy who got one to dabble with. The interface is so bad we can't even figure out how to get monthly statements. It shows the market value of the portfolio only. It looks like it was modified from a windows 2000 interface or something bush league. That, and somehow the money he transfers in isn't matching the amount he attempted to transfer in. I think the platform skims a chunk of the money to some weird admin fee or something. I honestly feel like his platform is closer to a fees scam that'll bleed his account dry with random fees beyond the $0.01 per share. I have no doubt he'll be able to use it to trade, but with the additional crap skimming his money, it's probably no cheaper than if he had gone through a big bank. I did ask him why he chose this platform and he told me it was cheaper, but mainly because it was the only platform he could find that would allow him to trade US securities. I thought he was joking. He was not. I really don't know where he got his financial advice from how he even found that platform. I really hope this account isn't going to screw him out of his money. The weird part is he's quite versed in computer programming. If he cannot find a monthly statement function on the interface... that's weird as hell.
I'm not saying all of those types of accounts are like this, but really do the research on the trading platform. I'd long suggest Qtrade/wealthsimple as a trade platform before I'd suggest these interactive brokers.