That's much more than $500/year! They don't pay interest for the first $10k (or equivalent in other currency) FOR ALL CURRENCIES. So, for example, if you are holding $40k in 4 different currencies, then your fee will be almost $2000/year! (assuming an average interest rate of 5% for the 4 currencies) This *must* be capped somehow, it's extraordinary!
Ya, I think the positive and negative numbers are either a bit exaggerated (5% in a brokerage account??) or a bit out of context (down 6.2%, as if they just charge that for no reason). Sure a 10K account is down 1.2% on fees, but then take your business to these $10-$20 a trade broker with web based platforms and see how fast your 10K account goes into the hole. 2 trades made and you're already ahead of the game. How does it get much better? I've been a customer since 2001 and aside from a run of snotballs in customer service a couple of years ago, all of my experience has been positive.
LOL. Hidden? Not only did Def just explain it to you, but it's documented on their website. It's simple. IB doesn't want piker accounts. For those who deposit $25k and up and are serious about their trading, these "mandatory" fees are meaningless. But for the $5000 piker... well, if he's trading actively and doing well, he's only missing out on the interest until his account grows. But just think, he's mostly going to actively trade futures or forex with that amount. And if that's the case, then perhaps his only complaint should be IB's intraday margin policy of 1/2 exchange mins. I can't think of any FCMs that pay interest on any amount of funds.
So let me get this right.. To be an active trader, I must have 25,000 + in my account? I only have 10,000 at the moment, I guess that doesn't classify me as one. How many trades a day am I able to go up to?
well Def, do you mind sharing what the interest amount that you usually pay? you can do a W.A(weighted average)
It's all there on their website: http://www.interactivebrokers.com/en/accounts/fees/interest.php?ib_entity=llc#credit Nothing hidden. You see, hidden means, you open the account and "surprise!" a fee that was never documented anywhere or buried in some legalese. But IB is upfront with it.
What Are you planning on trading? You can't be an active trader in Stocks or SSF (single stock futures) b/c you'll most probably trigger the PDT (pattern day trader) rules. The only way to avoid the PDT @ any brokerage is to have $25k+ in your account. IF you're going to daytrade futures or forex, after 5 or 6 trades in a month you won't incur any fees at all. And if you deposit $10K, the first dollar over that will begin to earn interest daily, credited daily. Just note, to my knowledge, there aren't any FCM (futures commission merchants) that pay interest on any amount of funds. What most traders do at other FCMs is to buy T-bills to gain interest. The T-bills can be used as margin up to 90%. IB, however only allows a min of $1mil for T-bills.