Choosing the right investment broker is crucial for beginner investors when starting their investment journey. With numerous platforms available, finding one that offers a balance of user-friendliness, cost-effectiveness, and comprehensive features can be challenging.
Interactive Brokers (IBKR) is a renowned global brokerage firm known for its low fees and advanced tools, but is it suitable for beginners? In this article, we’ll review IBKR’s offerings, features, and usability to help you decide if it’s the right platform for you.
What is IBKR?
Interactive Brokers (IBKR) is a Nasdaq-listed online trading platform established in 1978, bringing over 40 years of experience to the industry. The platform offers access to a diverse range of investment products, including stocks, options, futures, and forex, IBKR caters to both individual traders and institutional investors worldwide.
Fees
When choosing a broker, you want to find one with transparent and competitive pricing that includes reasonable borrowing costs and favourable currency conversion rates to maximize your investment potential while minimizing trading expenses.
Account opening: Free
Trading Fee: 0.05% - 0.10% of trade value (depending on chosen plan).
Tools & Resources Fee: Extra charges apply (depending on chosen plan and tools/resources)
Margin rate: 6-8% (depending on the selected currency)
Conversion rate: Because MYR is not accepted on IBKR, the conversion rate will vary depending on which bank you choose.
One advantage of IBKR is that it combines all of your day's trades in a specific stock and charges you a single fee. For example, if you split RM5,000 worth of a stock trade into 10 separate RM500 entries, IBKR would charge you approximately RM5 for all 10 trades. In comparison to moomoo Malaysia, which charges RM3 or USD0.99 for each trade you make, if you attempt the same trade 10 times, you will end up paying RM30 because each trade is charged separately. This benefits active traders who make multiple trades within a day, as your trades can be stacked in a single transaction to save cost.
Investment products and market access
IBKR offers a wide range of investment products, including stocks, ETFs, options, futures, bonds, and forex, with market access in over 150 markets across the United States, Canada, Europe, Australia, India, and Singapore. The platform is a powerhouse for advanced traders looking to apply their complex trading strategies and explore international investment opportunities.
Features, tools and learning resources
IBKR GlobalAnalyst
The GlobalAnalyst feature allows traders to identify specific global stocks based on price-to-earnings ratios, market capitalization, growth rate, and so on. This tool helps traders find stocks at potentially undervalued prices across the globe, saves time by allowing targeted searches, and simplifies comparison by presenting relevant data in one place.
Reporting Suite
The Reporting Suite includes reporting functions that help generate comprehensive reports on trades, positions, performance, risk, taxes, and other topics. This feature enables traders to further customise their reports for highly segmented analysis and export them in text, CSV, and PDF formats.
Trader Workstation
Trader Workstation (TWS) is Interactive Brokers' desktop trading platform that provides tools and features for trading stocks, options, futures, forex, bonds, and funds on over 135 markets across the globe. Users can simulate or engage in live trading by logging in with their IBKR account or trying the demo mode. Additionally, TWS offers tools for watchlists, order entry, portfolio monitoring, and more. The platform can be downloaded from the IBKR website, with no login fee, although some advanced features may require a subscription.
Learning Materials
IBKR Campus offers a range of educational resources, including the Traders' Academy portal, which hosts high-quality content from both in-house and third-party educators. Beginner investors can greatly benefit from the Traders' Academy, where they can access free courses to understand IBKR's trading tools and build their financial knowledge. The academy provides courses for investors at all levels, covering various markets and currencies, to help them establish a solid financial foundation. Accessible through the Education menu on the Interactive Brokers website or Client Portal, Traders' Academy is a valuable resource.
Additionally, IBKR Campus features Traders' Insight, which provides investors with market analysis and trading strategies from professional traders and industry experts. This feature is essential for advanced traders to stay updated on specific market trends and to refine their investment approaches. You can access Traders' Insight through IBKR Mobile by tapping the Home icon in the bottom navigation menu, then swiping up to the Learn section.
User-experience and platform design on
A user-friendly interface directly impacts your ability to navigate markets effectively. It enables quick decision-making, ensures easy access to essential data, and facilitates smooth trade execution, which is crucial for seizing market opportunities.
Interactive Brokers is a powerful platform packed with a whole spectrum of products and trading tools that sophisticated traders will enjoy. The platform is known for it’s robust infrastructure, which ensures high-speed data transmission and trade execution. However, the interface's complexity can pose a steep learning curve for beginners because its advanced functionalities can be challenging to navigate.
Setting up your IBKR account
You can open an account with Interactive Brokers here. There are two types of accounts you can open: a cash account (where you use your existing funds to trade) and a margin account (where the broker lends you money against your securities as collateral).
Following this, you'll proceed to complete a more detailed application. The application involves filling in over 10 sections, which should take you around 20 minutes. The platform evaluation typically occurs within 1-3 days. You’ll also need to verify your identity via e-KYC and phone number, in addition to providing a copy of your bank statement. This thorough verification process is geared towards professionals seeking extensive market access and a robust, secure platform.
How to fund your IBKR account
Before you start trading, you’ll need to fund your account. Since IBKR is not registered in Malaysia, the Malaysian ringgit is not supported by the platform. Here’s how you can fund your international brokerage account:
Bank transfer
Transfer your funds using your bank’s Foreign Telegraphic Transfer (TT) service from your local account in MYR to IBKR’s international account. Again, the currency conversion fees will be charged by your bank. Please keep in mind that this is not an instant transfer and that your funds will most likely take a few days to reflect in your account.
Wise transfer
You can use a Wise multicurrency account so your funds can be converted into a supported currency and deposited into your IBKR account. Wise has competitive rates and is a great option for you to fund your account.
Instarem
Alternatively, you can use Instarem, a cross-border payment service that supports ACH direct debit payments, which is the cheapest option to fund your account.
After successfully funding your account, you can start placing orders to enter your first trade.
Pros and cons of IBKR
Pros | Cons |
Low commission and trading fees | Pricing can vary depending on plan |
Sophisticated and comprehensive tools for experienced traders | Extensive tools might be overwhelming to beginners and can be a steep learning curve |
High-quality educational content for investors at all levels | Doesn't support MYR currency |
Wide range of investment products | Doesn't support MYR currency |
Nasdaq-listed broker with over 2 million users |
Conclusion
If you’re interested in investing, Interactive Brokers is definitely a recommended and trusted broker. However, it is worth taking note that the complexity of the platform can be quite intimidating and is not the most beginner-friendly platform for new investors.
Disclaimer: This is not investment advice. All content produced is solely for educational and entertainment purposes only. Please consult your financial advisor before making any investment decisions.
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