I'm coming from just basic stocks although I do have some experience with futures. I'm a little overwhelmed by the options between brokers and platforms. I tried to set up a futures account with my current stock broker but the process has been a pain (to say the least), and I dislike thinkorswim (which is what they use). I'm not looking for anything elaborate. I just want a straighforward, easy to use and reliable platform. I don't really care about personal service or hand holding... I'm actually more comfortable with larger, more anonymous service. I've used Open E Cry and liked it. The problem is a lot of these brokers their sites look kind of unprofessional, and I'm not very experienced with differentiating between scams and legit companies. For example, I looked at Cannon Trading but they seem like a small company that is somehow connected to e-futures.com (whatever that means?), and they seem to have a small staff despite supposedly being around since the 80's. The lack of significant online presence for an established company was also a red flag for me. When I looked at the google maps street view, there's a for lease sign on their building (probably a different suite, but still... there was no identifying info for them on the building). Probably just a bad coincidence, but gave be a shady vibe nonetheless. Any thoughts? Thanks.
https://optimusfutures.com/ If I had the capital to endure the leverage on swing trades on the daily charts I'd look at these guys. Heard a podcast from Matt on chatwithtraders and sounds like they have a lot of options to make things work for your needs. But the world of futures seems to be very competitive and the amount of brokers seems almost endless when I look around.
I've been trading for over 20 years and have been with a number of brokers. I've been with Cannon Trading for about 4 years now and can say their service is second to none. They are a introducing broker and can offer you a number of trading platforms. Highly recommended.
I've traded with Cannon Trading now for over the past few years and they're great. I use two different platforms with them through two different FCMs because I wanted to keep my funds diversified from all the MF Global and PFG scare. I use E-Futures which is their free platform, the clearing firm in which I receive my statements is Gain Capital, and I just started using FireTip, which I know clears through Ironbeam. The good thing with Cannon is that I can use multiple platforms, have multiple accounts but still only work with one person who services all of my accounts. I look every broker up on the NFA website before I start working with them just to make sure they have a clean record. I also have an account with TOS. Here is Cannon Trading on the NFA website and indeed they have been registered since the late 1980s http://www.nfa.futures.org/basicnet/Details.aspx?entityid=h7mIz5jZRLc=&rn=Y
Cannon is solid, so is Ironbeam. Cons to Interactive Brokers is that their risk staff pretty much hates risk. You're not given significant leverage there, and you also can't take on some of the riskier options trades without them breathing down your neck.
Thank you for the recommendation. I really appreciate it. Yes, we have many options as far as platforms and data feeds because different traders need different solutions. Also, traders grow as far as their knowledge and may require different solutions then what they need now. I want them to stay with us when such a day arrives while I have the right solution. This is why the infrastructure of my company is always an ongoing effort.