I love IB/TWS...

tommcginnis

tommcginnis

That whole "Smart-Routing" thang...... looking for "price improvement" --
it's gotten me out of more than one miscue.....

This morning was the latest: I owned an ATM spread in SPX, expiring today, that was covering short positions well above the current market. Phooey! Sell the insurance spread before it dies!

Then I noticed that top-side spreads I'd put on for Monday Nov13 were not so protected, and then I noticed that the prices/price differences were nearly the same. Well! Rather than torture myself in the timing of a long-position sale (and spend the next trading day in angst over similar positions expiring a day later), why not roll these Nov10s?? Great.

In the premarket, I set it up as a SELL with a -$1 price, in my mind thinking that a minus $1 price would guarantee it would not get hit. I was reversing/inverting/perverting too much in my mind, and goofed the price. But in it went, and two minutes into today's cash market (with a MID price of 30¢) I hit TRANSMIT.

The trade was taken immediately -- which surprised me, because I thought even if it were priced at the 30¢ MID, that it would take a while to get hit -- such cross-expiry rolls don't play so well, usually. But it got hit! BANG.

That speed of acceptance made me take another look at my price, and I realized that I'd taken it to market for a negative price. "Damn! Did I just *pay* for that "sale"???"

I checked the TRADE LOG and Lo! Nope!! "Price Improvement" time! I sold 'em right at the MID of 30¢. Frikken sweet.

We bitch (as we should) when mistakes are made.
I try to acknowledge the sweet stuff, too.
This be sweet. And, to be even more fair, it's something I've seen before.

So, "Yay, IB." :thumbsup:
 
Glad you got a good fill, but this is really a function of the CBOE, rather than IB. IB routed your order to the CBOE COB where it was filled electronically by their electronic auction system. You would have had the same fill with any other broker that sent the order to the COB (and almost all would unless over a certain size). Talking about the SPX, which is single listed.

I have been entering a lot of spreads in the SPX lately and have found the fill prices very fair. I am filled at the same price even if my limit is lower, so if I enter a 9 offer, and the bid is 9.5, I am filled at 9.5. This is true even when there is no standing bid.
 
IB is by far the worst company in my many 56 years of life I have ever dealt with. They have taken $ from me in bogus back billing charges and are now blaming me. Even their customer service agrees I am getting robbed yet they try to put the blame back on me. My monthly statements prove they have double billed me for many months despite weeks of proving it to them. Filing with the BBB.

This started when I had opened several ticket over the last few months - no longer getting stock/ETF quotes - the problem is on their end. I suspect this is their retaliation for being persistent in asking that they work on a fix. Beware of this broker.
 
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comagnum said:
IB is by far the worst company in my many 56 years of life I have ever dealt with. They have taken $ from me in bogus back billing charges and are now blaming me. Even their customer service agrees I am getting robbed yet they try to put the blame back on me. My monthly statements prove they have double billed me for many months despite weeks of proving it to them. Filing with the BBB.

This started when I had opened several ticket over the last few months - no longer getting stock/ETF quotes - the problem is on their end. I suspect this is their retaliation for being persistent in asking that they work on a fix. Beware of this broker.
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Just curious. Double billed for what? Exchange fees?
 
Just curious. Double billed for what? Exchange fees?

For the data feed fees - this is on the monthly statements under 'fees". In fairness to them it is "still under review" although I have been at this for weeks now. The phone call with the IB rep was not the fact based & resolution focused approach I get with my other brokers. I shut off all my data fees and notified them on the ticket to have protection going forward. You do not have to use their market data to put in orders.

IB is doing a number of things well - its to bad their customer service is at the other end of the spectrum.
 
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FSU said:
Glad you got a good fill, but this is really a function of the CBOE, rather than IB. IB routed your order to the CBOE COB where it was filled electronically by their electronic auction system. You would have had the same fill with any other broker that sent the order to the COB (and almost all would unless over a certain size). Talking about the SPX, which is single listed.

I have been entering a lot of spreads in the SPX lately and have found the fill prices very fair. I am filled at the same price even if my limit is lower, so if I enter a 9 offer, and the bid is 9.5, I am filled at 9.5. This is true even when there is no standing bid.
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"Killjoy!!"

(Which is to say, Your explanation goes beyond my knowledge/ability to discern the better explanation between you and IB. The whole subject merits more time/attention then I have.
I will certainly keep this all in mind, for next time, though I will wish for the more IB-agrandizing explanation, well, "cuz.") ;)
 
comagnum said:
My monthly statements prove they have double billed me for many months despite weeks of proving it to them. Filing with the BBB.
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Go for it but realize that the BBB has no teeth. I've gone round and round with Dell with proof of my being correct and despite it all, if the vendor says says Nyet!, you're SOL.
 
FSU said:
Glad you got a good fill, but this is really a function of the CBOE, rather than IB. IB routed your order to the CBOE COB where it was filled electronically by their electronic auction system. You would have had the same fill with any other broker that sent the order to the COB (and almost all would unless over a certain size). Talking about the SPX, which is single listed.

I have been entering a lot of spreads in the SPX lately and have found the fill prices very fair. I am filled at the same price even if my limit is lower, so if I enter a 9 offer, and the bid is 9.5, I am filled at 9.5. This is true even when there is no standing bid.
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Not really, most other firms sell their flow and don't have DMA to the exchanges. What stops the firm purchasing the flow to leg the orders on the exchange, claim they provide dramatic price improvement all the while scalping out on the COB for large edge?
 
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