Is my money safe at Interactive Brokers ?

IB is a clearing firm for many exchanges worldwide.

If you are concerned about cash then take positions rather than hold cash.

IB would have to chew through its $4 billion in capital before customers had a problem.

Please name some brokers where your cash is safer than it is at IB.

 

easy, the NY Fed
http://www.elitetrader.com/vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=139624

 

What about Refco or Lehman? Those guys will never fail......oh wait DOH!

 

What kind of positions? You are telling me that I have to trade/invest in order for my money to be safe????

 

I was making a joke about owning IB stock and how the price went down.

I think IB is one of the safer places to trade with.

They are international as well which I think may make them safer than T-Bills when you consider the cash burn of the US govt and the management of each....lol

 

No. If you put your money t-bills, it is insured up to 500,000 by the SPIC.

 

just read something about that...

Irish banks have liabilities that are 300% of the country’s GDP, if all banks would fail, governments would be incapable of living up to them.

http://www.bktraderfx.com/site/fx-w...-1003-0808-euro-can-you-spare-a-dime#more-663

 

interesting. cash is in the banks.ok. and where are the positions, the stocks that i own? separated from the cash?

i have a position in USD/JPY , where is the money held?

 

My money is protected by the Canadian government. That's why my accounts are at IB Canada.

http://www.interactivebrokers.ca/en/general/about/ibgStrengthCA.php?ib_entity=ca

 

I think that IB ist one of the safest places at the moment.

First, IB ist still largely a private company, so no risk of irresponsible behavior of CEOs which are not owners.

Second, Petterfy ist a veteran in the options business. If there is one person who knows how to measure and avoid risks, he is.

According to their website, funds are held at various banks, selected depending on counterparty risk. I have no reason the question this statement at the moment.

IB has been critizized multiple times for their very conservative, risk-averse policy (for example, suspension of intraday margins during high volatility periods). Most people don't seem to understand, that exactly this policy is in the best interest of their customers in times like these. Better be safe than sorry.

Conclusion: IB may be in fact one of the 'safest havens' existing at the moment.