Interactive Brokers Review
Company Overview
Interactive Brokers was founded in 1977 and is an online discount brokerage firm in the United States. This company specializes in stocks, bonds, futures, forex and options trading. In 2013, clients at Interactive Brokers were placing 500,000 trades every day and consisted of 21.4% of the North American options trading volume. Interactive Brokers has won a variety of awards for the services they provide including a 4.5 star rating From Barron’s. Also in 2013, Interactive Brokers received several other awards from Barron’s including Best Trading Experience and Technology and Best Portfolio and Analysis Reports.
Account Options
| Minimum Contribution | Maximum Contribution | |
|---|---|---|
| Roth IRA | No Minimum | $5,500 per year |
| Traditional IRA | No Minimum | $5,500 per year |
| SEP IRA | No Minimum | 25% of compensation (up to $51,000) |
| SIMPLE IRA | - | - |
| Self-Directed IRA | - | - |
| Rollover IRA | No Minimum | $5,500/year |
| Inherited IRA | No Minimum | No Limit |
The account options at Interactive Brokers are similar to what options are available at other IRA account providers. There is a ‘catch-up contribution’ options for those over the age of 50 who meet the requirements of a Roth or traditional IRA.
Investment Options
| Associated IRA Investment Fees | |
|---|---|
| Stocks | $0.005/share |
| Mutual Funds | $14.95/transaction |
| Options | $0.70/contract |
| Exchange-Traded Funds | $0.005/share |
| Annuities | - |
Interactive Brokers offer standard investment options including ETFs, mutual funds, options and stocks but does not offer annuities. Traditional and Roth IRA clients can also invest in CFDs, futures, futures options and bonds at Interactive Brokers.
Fees and Commissions
| Account Related Fees for Roth IRA | |
|---|---|
| Minimum Account Balance Required | $5,000 |
| Account Maintenance Fee | $7.50/quarter |
| Termination Fee | - |
| Transfer Fee | None |
The fees for IRA accounts at Interactive Brokers are fairly low and the commission fees on trades are some of the lowest in the industry. The low commission fees allow investors to put more of their funds into investments while spending less money on paying commissions. Investors can refer to the Education Center for interactive tours, webinars and other important investing and retirement information.
Retirement Planning
Interactive Brokers provides investors with many investment tools to enhance their trading. However, there are not many IRA-specific tools like retirement planning guides or IRA calculators. Investors will have access to the Education Center which provides webinars, tours and courses on futures, options, forex and stock trading. Interactive Brokers also has a proprietary software program called PortfolioAnalyst. This tool allows investors to analyze every aspect of their retirement and/or trading portfolio including risk measures and cumulative performance.
Account Features
Investors of any age can open a Roth IRA at Interactive Brokers. In addition, investors must place a minimum equity deposit of $5,000 to open any type of IRA at Interactive Brokers. Investors are also required to have extensive knowledge of the products they want to trade and they must have executed a minimum of 100 trades of any financial product. Interactive Brokers caters to knowledgeable and experienced investors and is not available for beginning investors.
Accessibility
| Multi-Device Functionality | |
|---|---|
| Mobile Site |  |
| iOS Accessible |  |
| Android Accessible |  |
With the mobile apps from Interactive Brokers, investors can view charts, place trades, access portfolio and account information, contact customer service and route orders using their iOS, Android, Blackberry or other smartphone or tablet device.
Safety and Security
Interactive Brokers customer securities accounts have a maximum protection from the SIPC for $500,000. Interactive Brokers also uses advanced security technology to protect client accounts against unauthorized access. Investors can get an additional security device that is required for account login for additional protection.
Customer Support
Clients can contact customer support 24/7 through regional customer service centers in the U.S., Asia and Europe. There are several methods of contacting customer support including live chat, phone and email. Clients will receive an immediate response with live chat or phone support. Email inquiries will generally be answered within 24 hours. The customer support staff at Interactive Brokers is professional, helpful and courteous.
Bottom Line
Interactive Brokers does not offer a great deal of retirement planning tools as this company tailors their services to advanced and knowledgeable traders. However, there are many powerful investment tools that provide in-depth analysis for trading and retirement portfolios in addition to low cost commissions.
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