Two Buys + One Sell = 2 Daytrades?

With IB's customer service I might get a wrong answer?

 

If IB is your broker go to their discussion board (their website). Reps their are quite knowledgeable and won't write anything which they don't want appearing on a board for some time.

 

Thanks for the idea. Now why didn't I think of that? I guess I
could ask my other question about daytrader account status
there also... Off I go!...

 

With IB, 2 X 500 BUY and 1 X 1000 SELL of the same stock would count as 1 daytrade.

MM

 

Yes, with IB, 1 trade is counted as opening a position in a stock no matter how many times you bought or sold short & then closing that position or part of it in the same day.

So, through the coarse of the day you bought 10 X 100 share orders of the same stock & then sold only 1 share of that stock that same day it would count against you.

 

IB's a great broker for executions and fees but they are unconscionable ballbreakers when it comes to interpreting the NASD and NYSE rules such as freeriding in cash accounts and settlements, etc.

In fact when you hit your 3 daytrade limit they won't even let you open a 4th position. Your account is frozen for the 5 days. I dipped 1 freakin' dollar below 25 k a month ago and I had to run to the bank and wire funds so I could trade again.

There have been some lively discussions with IB's reps on their company bulletin board site about their interpretation of the regs - all to no avail.

 

Maybe IB didn't let you open a 4th position because you went
below the 25K? No, that doesn't seem right. Well yes it does.

If you would of opened the 4th position you would of been
in default of the HOLY DAYTRADING RULE and IB would of
had to freeze your account for 90 days. You should be glad
they didn't let THAT happen to you...

:eek:

 

I think to have seen it on IB Forum that it depend if you have cash account or margin account, in the first case this give 1 daytrade and for the second this give 2 daytrade.

 

version77,

Opening 4th position is not yet a daytrade. The 25k rules allow an account to open unlimited number of positions. In short, the rules allow unlimited multiday-trades and max. 3 daytrades.

But if you open 4th position there's a risk that the stock can drop intraday like MSTR, and without being able to close the position (that'll be a 4th daytrade, violating the rules) you can loose your shirt on margin. ElvisonMargin knows that.
That's why IB allows max. 3 daytrades in 5 days - to protect itself and its customers, imo.

Fohat

 

Two Buys + One Sell = ?

It's up to the broker to decide this. It can count as one daytrade.