Funny. Summer in Chicago, as soon as the market closes we all racing to get outside to enjoy the best 3 months of the year! To answer the previous question: 100% I would open my trading account with AMP Even putting all personal bias aside, here is how the AMP operations seem to differ from other FCMs (previously posted somewhere here on ET): Financials: AMP does not engage in any business other than the processing of trades for Futures and Commodity Customers. We are not dependent on interest income or alternative investments for our profitability - we process electronic futures trades for our customers- it's our business. What we do not do? ⢠No proprietary trading ⢠No Exchange Floor Trading - Positions Reported to Clearing Firm only every 15 minutes (Only electronic exchange trades by AMP customers - P/L to the tick) ⢠No exposure to mortgage backed securities ⢠No exposure to European debt ⢠No activity in OTC or Off-Exchange Trading (such as Forex) ⢠No Naked Short Options Selling (Unlimited Risk) by AMP Customers What we do? ⢠AMP reports its financial position on a daily and monthly basis to NFA and CFTC. Mitigate Market Risk/Exposure: ⢠AMP risk controls are marked to the tick and tradable markets are limited to the major liquid markets - no exotic/illiquid instruments. We take regulation seriously - Our History: Zero Regulatory Actions against AMP (IB or FCM, since 2005 inception) by the neither NFA nor CFTC. ⢠AMP Futures: http://www.nfa.futures.org/basicnet/Details.aspx?entityid=YMMH7B93DXI=&rn=N ⢠AMP Trading: http://www.nfa.futures.org/basicnet/Details.aspx?entityid=EPGnwkgRmus=&rn=N ⢠AMP Clearing: http://www.nfa.futures.org/basicnet/Details.aspx?entityid=k17Ne6qLDo8=&rn=N Size: ⢠AMP is the entire 24th Floor of the LaSalle/Wacker building in Chicago. ⢠AMP 24 hour Help Desk is fully staffed - 15 agents during US trading hours and 4 agents during non-US trading hours. ⢠AMP 24 hour Trade Desk is fully staffed - 4 agents during US trading hours and 2 agents during non-US trading hours. ⢠AMP 24 hour Risk Department is fully staffed - 6 agents during US trading hours and 2 agents during non-US trading hours. So you can see, we not trying to be an FCM that does everything, we understand our customers and we focus on providing the best customer service, the best available trading solutions - all at the cheapest pricing. Totally understand the need for a trader to perform his/her due diligence. If there are any questions not answered, please send an email to: trading@ampclearing.com
That's a great point, and I think AMP is a good broker, but still, ask yourself what happened to all the uninsured banks? At the end of the day, however great a bank or broker is, anyone with a brain will choose an insured account over an uninsured account. That just makes common sense. Especially these days with brokers going bankrupt left and right. I don't know why AMP is so concerned about a simple post stating the simple fact that the money in your account at AMP has zero insurance on it. If it's not true, and what I say is wrong. If there is in fact some form of insurance on the funds in ones AMP account, please correct me.
Please take the time and read the full statement under "Account Protection": "Futures, and options on futures are not covered." That is why the above AMP operation details in my opinion are so important when dealing with customers futures accounts. Once AMP has securities, we will have the same insurance. I do want to add this disclaimer because this is a very sensitive subject and this was honestly a quick read this morning of the above section, so with further research other available options for customer safety may be available. Although it is believed that information provided is accurate, no guarantee is made. AMP Global Clearing assumes no responsibility for any errors or omissions. Customers should perform their own due diligence and not be fully reliant on 3rd party information. There is a substantial risk of loss in trading commodity futures, options and off-exchange foreign currency products. The risk of trading can be substantial and each investor/trader must consider whether this is a suitable investment based on their own financial situation.
I don't know anything about AMP, but the right question to ask <i>any</i> futures broker is: is your entire net worth at risk? What you want to know about your broker is, when the stuff hits the fan, will he be reduced to living in a South Side flophouse before any customer funds are touched?... If he'll come out of it with a Lakeshore Dr condo and a Minnesota vacation cottage and a pile of cash and munis, then his incentives aren't aligned with his customers'. Be very wary of brokers whose principals firewall off their personal wealth from the firm's capital, and/or leave only the necessary minimum in the business... You want your broker to be in the same position as a commercial airline pilot -- whose own life depends on it, too -- which is why there are so few plane crashes.
That's true to Rodney, or you could just use a broker with insurance. Then you don't have to worry about any of it.
And what is the point of this statement? There is no such broker. No US futures broker insures the funds in your futures account. You rely only on the capital and risk management practices of the clearing firm.
You can trade futures with IB. When you have cash, parked in your account, it's covered by SIPC insurance, and Lloyd's of London insurance.