Someone commented in another thread that IB accounts are not protected against fraud and unauthorized access -- as are accounts at most brokerages. Would someone on ET who represents IB care to comment on this? Thanks.
Im curious about the same. Also are Canadian accounts at IB different if the US ones arnt covered? I think iv heard that Canadian accounts are automatically insured up to 100k by the govt. But i could be wrong. And I dont know what the insurance applies to. Might only be for if IB pulls a Refco.
Are IB accounts protected against FRAUD -- or only against failure of IB as a brokerage? Not getting any definitive answers on this from IB. Many brokerages have insurance against fraud and unauthorized account access, but I'm not sure IB has such insurance; I can't find any such reference on IB's website. Anybody know for sure? Does anybody even care?
I believe you are correct, and for this reason I am considering a Canadian futures broker. There is so much ambiguity over segregated accounts providing protection.
Well, I was speaking to a broker about the Refco incident and he said that all of his customer's funds were easily transferred in the matter of about 1-3 business days to another brokerage. Now the issue of fraud (as in fraud committed by the brokerage against the client?), I'm not sure. You can file a complaint with the CFTC, but that's not the exact same as having an actual insurance policy. But then again, what would the insurance company actually do in this senario? For example, your broker trades your acct funds for you without your permission.....
TDAmeritrade, for example, has this statement posted on their website in regards to client asset protection: "Asset Protection Guarantee. If you lose cash or securities from your account due to unauthorized activity, we'll reimburse you for the cash or shares of securities you lost." Are they the only brokerage in the U.S. that provides this level of guarantee?
try to collect. it sound goods like warranties on products or health insurance etc. with many qualifications which will make it difficult to collect.
zdreg, which unreasonable provisions in TD Ameritrade's fraud protection guarantee will not let you collect in such an event?
E*Trade says "Our promise to you is simple: E*TRADE Securities LLC or E*TRADE Bank will cover any loss that results from the unauthorized use of our brokerage, banking or lending services." but also "We may impose greater liability if we determine that an unauthorized transaction was caused by your fraudulent action or gross negligence - which may include any delay in reporting unauthorized transactions to us." There's also a thread (anecdotal, of course) at http://elitetrader.com/vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=90860 that implies there's some difficulty in getting a response from them. Schwab says "Schwab will cover 100% of any losses in any of your Schwab accounts due to unauthorized activity." and "Reimbursement under the guarantee requires your timely reporting of unauthorized activity to Schwab. Schwab will not be liable for additional or increased losses resulting from a failure to report unauthorized activity in a timely manner. Different transactions have different reporting deadlines. More details are available in your account agreements, statements and trade confirmations."