Once you start to look for the reviews on brokers, you may end up confused. Various experiences of the customers will divide your thoughts and opinions into certain foreign exchange companies. Therefore you will not be sure whether to join or discard them as an option. Nevertheless, it is important to find a reliable company which is going to help you gain profit quickly, guide you into the world of currency trading possibilities and make you a good trader. All these things are possible with the help of a good broker, but how to know that broker is not a scam? Usually, reliable and safe broker companies are those which are regulated and licensed, although it is not a rare case that even the regulated companies participate in different manipulating actions. Whatever you decide you should know that there are risks, like in any business, you can avoid to a large degree it if you explore the market and educate yourself enough on the companies you work with and Forex market in general. However, the problem does not stop here. Regulatory agencies also became a part in these manipulations, providing a cover for companies. It brings further problem for all the traders to decide which authorities should be trusted.
Forex Brokers We Recommend
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Background and Regulations
ThinkorSwim is a trading platform of TD Ameritrade. TD Ameritrade Inc is further a member of Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) and Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC). TD Ameritrade, with its long history in the financial industry, had many ups and downs. The company was founded in 1975, originally named First Omaha Securities. With currently over 6 million customers in the United States and over 100 TD Ameritrade locations, it is one of the largest online brokers. The company offers some excellent investment choices, reliable investing tools, and first-rate trading platform. Opening an account is quite easy and quick as well, you can join the buying and selling the same day. TD Ameritrade, however, participated in several controversies like 2007 hacker incident, auction rate securities scandal as well as breaking the buck affair in 2008. TD Ameritrade was investigated and finally settled the case in 2011 paying 1.2¢ per share of the fund held by its customers. After the abovementioned scandal, the TD Ameritrade has been one of the most reliable companies in the US.
ThinkorSwim Trading Platform
The ThinkorSwim trading platform by TD Ameritrade is the number one trading platform by Barron’s. It offers the web and mobile applications available for your Blackberry, iPhone, Android, or Windows phone. This platform provides a possibility to trade in multiple markets with a wide range of critical tools. Traders may open a demo account at any time to explore the software and learn about its opportunities. However, live accounts involve opening and funding an account with TD Ameritrade.
TD Ameritrade Account Types
There are several accounts available for the clients of TD Ameritrade. All of these accounts accept ThinkorSwim as their platform. For example, you can open both individual and joint accounts which have following conditions:
- No minimum deposit, trade options require a minimum balance of $2,000
- Electronic deposit minimum set at $500
- Ability to trade stocks, mutual funds, ETFs, bonds, options, CDs, UITs and REITs
- Cash, cash and margin, cash and option or cash, margin and option accounts
You can also choose retirement or individual retirement accounts as well. They can be cash, or cash and options accounts, while the investment choices are the same as for individual and joint accounts. These accounts also do not have minimum deposit amount set. Besides, TD Ameritrade has a possibility of opening education savings accounts as well as accounts for businesses, trusts, and investment clubs. Although the accounts are used for different purposes, they offer very similar features to individual accounts.
Bonus Policy
The company does not offer any promotions and special offers currently, what may be considered as a disadvantage when attracting new clients.
Banking Options
All the fund’s transfers can be completed via check, wire transfer, electronic funding or transfer assets. Currently, they provide a significant number of currency pairs and accept currencies as American Dollars, Australian Dollars, Euros, Canadian Dollars, Swiss Francs, Japanese Yens, Norwegian Kroner, Polish Zlotys and many other. Maximum deposit amount for electronic funding is $150,000, and you have several accounts opened with the same name than the maximum is $250,000 per day. All electronic funding transactions must be from a US bank account and in USD. You are not able to make transactions from a third-party accounts or business accounts even though it might contain your name.
Customer Service
Customer representatives are available around the clock, friendly and always ready to answer client’s questions and solve a problem. There are multiple toll-free phone numbers, as well other options like email, fax or a letter. Support and chat are also available options within the ThinkorSwim platform.