Some of the brokers that offer on-line trading are, among others, Interactive Broker, Optionsxpress, Scottrade, Thingorswim, and TD Ameritrade. With the presence of on-line trading, trading financial instruments these days are not only the monopoly of big and professional traders, but also individual investors. It is not surprising then that the trading size of financial instruments has increased at an exponential rate.
Having said that, speedy internet connection is not the only determinant to succeed in on-line trading. Dealing through a reliable broker is another key success factor. The question then is how you would know if a broker is reliable or not to be your on-line trading partner. After browsing through a number of brokers, here are what I thing you should consider when picking a broker.
1.Commission. Some brokers offer a commission as low as $1 per transaction, while others charge a variable amount depending on the transaction value. Some brokers charge a low flat fee, but they may charge extra fees for order cancellation, or market data feed they provide. The bottom line is, be extra diligent and dig out the details of the fees they offer. 2.Trade tools. More and more brokers now offer excellent tools such as stock price streaming, charting tools, live news feed, and so on. Many of them also provide videos that outline step-by-step guide to help you get familiar with their systems. The bottom line is there are many to choose from, take your time to really pick the one that is the most suitable to your trading needs.
3. Trading platform. Some brokers offer web-based platform, whereby you can log in to their system from any computer station. As for the others, you should download their software to be installed into your computer station. In many cases, I found the separate trading system provides more features, even though it is less practical.
4. Security/ protection. Given the possibility of fraud, many on-line brokers now add additional layers of protection in addition to just password. Explore how well your account is protected.
5.Site's speed. In addition to your own internet connection, your trade execution also depends on the broker's overall networking system. Some brokers have excellent and speedy network as such that placing orders only takes one or two seconds. This is a crucial factor in trading on-line, thus test-drive your broker network first before you execute any sizable real trade.
6.Customer service. Having a friendly and helpful customer service must be on your broker checklist. Many brokers provide support through phone calls, emails, or one-on-one live chat. Imagine if you are in the middle of a trade and come across problems, and the customer service is not readily available to help you. That is such a terrible situation that should not ever happen.
No comments:
Post a Comment