Interactive Brokers

Interactive Brokers: brief history

Interactive Brokers is a brokerage company from the USA, founded back in 1978. Starting its operations over four decades ago, today Interactive Brokers operates successfully in 125 markets worldwide, conducting nearly a million trades daily and having a capital exceeding $7 billion.

The company was founded by Thomas Peterffy, who in 1977 acquired a seat on the American Stock Exchange (AMEX) and became a member. As an innovator in computerized trading, he developed several revolutionary solutions, including the first portable computers for trading and automatic order creation and submission to the market. In 1993, Peterffy founded Interactive Brokers, which in 2014 became the first to offer direct access to IEX.

Interactive Brokers’ offices are located in Greenwich, Connecticut, and the firm has 24 offices in 12 countries, including Russia.

The company is a member of NYSE, FINRA, SIPC, and other exchanges, under the supervision of the SEC and CFTC.

Trading conditions and accounts

Interactive Brokers offers access to a wide range of trading instruments, such as stocks, options, futures, currencies, indices, funds, and more. To utilize all the platform’s features, one account is sufficient.

Account types

The company offers various types of accounts, including individual, joint accounts, IRAs (Individual Retirement Accounts), trust accounts, as well as accounts for institutional clients. Accounts can be cash or margin accounts, with the latter allowing trading using credit funds.

Minimum deposit

Interactive Brokers has eliminated the $10,000 minimum deposit and allows starting with a minimum of $100, but this may not be advantageous due to higher inactivity fees if the account balance is below $2,000.

Trading platforms and orders

Interactive Brokers’ clients can choose from five trading solutions, each designed for different categories of traders. The company provides access to over 100 types of orders and algorithms suitable for various assets and transactions.

Withdrawals and customer support

To withdraw funds, a request must be submitted, with the first withdrawal within 30 days being free, while subsequent withdrawals may incur a fee. The company provides Russian-speaking support available for communication via phone.

Reviews and referral program

Interactive Brokers collects both positive and negative reviews from clients who highly appreciate the wide range of trading instruments, low commissions, and other benefits but also point out some drawbacks. The company offers a referral program for receiving bonuses when attracting new clients.