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Opening an Interactive Brokers Account
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STRATxAI

September 2023 · 5 min read

How to open a broker account (IBKR)

Getting Started

This article is for users on an Established or Xplorer plan which has been augmented with Connect.

STRATxAI offers seamless integration with Interactive Brokers globally (as well as Alpaca)

If you are in the US ensure you have an IBKR Pro account, not IBKR lite.

In this post we go through some of the key steps to opening an Interactive Broker account. It should not take long to fill in the IBKR online form, provided you have a few key documents to hand. Check the requirements for your domain here before you get started.

You would want to factor in a few days to a week before you have a fully approved and funded IBKR Pro account (this is fast compared to most comparable brokers today). Once you are up and running it is straightforward to link your broker account to your STRATxAI account.

Note: Each STRATxAI Strategy must be held in isolation in a single IBKR account. If you have or plan to have any Non-STRATxAI positions or invest in multiple STRATxAI strategies, then you will need to open sub accounts with IBKR. There needs to be one sub-account per STRATxAI strategy and any non-STRATxAI stocks should be held in their own separate account.

Let's get started.

How do I open an Interactive Brokers account ?

Go to the relevant Interactive Brokers website for your region and click on "Open Account" and then "Start Application".

Head over to Interactive Brokers to open an account

Follow the on screen instructions to set up your username and password, as well as verifying your email address.

The next part is the Financial Questionnaire which may seem long, but we have some pointers for you below.

Once that part is complete, you will be asked to upload your documents for verification and need to wait a few days for the application to be reviewed.

The Interactive Brokers financial questionnaire

The questionnaire is well laid out and self explanatory for the most part. Here are a few pointers on the following questions.

  • Cash or Margin
  • Account Type
  • Source of Wealth
  • Trading Experience and Permissions
  • Verification
  • Funding

Cash or Margin

Up front you will have the choice of Cash or Margin. Cash requires you to have the funds available for all transactions and generally there are less trading experience requirements. It would be a good choice for a first time user.

Account type

Most users will likely choose an individual account, but you can also select a joint or retirement account. Note that a retirement account such as an IRA account, will require some extra information.

Interactive Brokers account type.
Interactive Brokers account type.

Source of Wealth

You will be asked to provide a breakdown of your sources of income. It could be that you select 100% as “Income from Employment” but there are many other options to choose from, including inheritance, property or even unemployment allowance.

Enter your income details for Interactive Brokers.
Enter your income details for Interactive Brokers.

Trading Experience and Permissions

If you are new to trading this section may seem daunting, so while you may have no experience in trading, even the limited knowledge that has got you to this point is relevant.

When selecting various asset classes of your choosing, bear in mind that to integrate your IBKR account with STRATxAI, you will need to have permission for ‘Stocks’ and you may also want ‘Currency/Forex’ so they are both worth requesting now at application.

Interactive Brokers want to know about your trading experience.
Interactive Brokers want to know about your trading experience.

Verification

Hopefully you checked the Interactive Brokers link here before starting and you have all the documents to hand.

You will have the option to confirm your mobile number and it's useful to do it at this point.

Funding

Interactive Brokers say they will prioritise the review of applications that already have been funded, so it’s worth transferring your first funds while you are waiting.

As you will likely be wiring funds from your bank account, speed things up by having your mobile banking app or other authentication device provided by your bank.

Factor in that depending on how much you are transferring, you may exceed your daily transfer allowance and may need to break it down over a few days.

Depending on your location, the transfer may be an International Bank transfer which could take a day or so longer also.

Final steps to complete your application.
*This article was last updated in 2022. If you come across any substantial differences when you open your IBKR account, please get in touch and let us know so we may update this guide accordingly.
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