Quote from FredBloggs:
....either way, thats a lot of money ib are splashing out just so they can get their hands on a reliable platform! anyway, refco stuff dont do stocks so its gunna be another lame duck (with bird flu)
Quote from saxon:
I just hope IB doesn't go down the tubes, biting off more than it can chew.
Fortunately, I closed my Refco account 6 months ago...dodging that bullet. But my IB account is still open. Don't want to have to bet on getting lucky TWICE. :eek:
Wall St. is becoming like a mine field; you have to be careful what you step on.....or what you step IN!
Quote from kjkent1:
As an IB customer with multiple accounts, I hope IB's proposed acquisition of Refco doesn't impair IB's status as one of the only decent retail trading firms in the market.
As these are righteous concerns for current IB customers, I'll volunteer some loose 'nononsense' thoughts.

Knowing something about software engineering, my speculation from a distance would go as follows:
(1) REFCO has or had a reliable platform(s) with plenty of really nice eye-candy. Only Futures.
No API. Only good for 'button-pushing', 'ladder-drugged' traders, no future whatsoever;
(2) REFCO had the insight (or good fortune?) not to have been stuck in the Java mess. Java, in spite of Sun's frantic efforts, is on its way out. (If you didn't know yet, read more about it in one of the latest O'Reilly books);
(3) REFCO never managed to think beyond or support anything but windoz. Also not very clever these days;
(4) REFCO had the wisdom of not trying to cater to the hungry 'Charting Crowd' knowing pretty well that there is only "miser's" money to be made of that customer segment; besides, a lot of competition; besides, a few practitioners went kind of under already trying their hand at it;
(5) REFCO and FIX? dunno about this. IB these days is trying to start something here but is still stuck with its Java. On top, you will likely need TWS next to the FIX connector, again Java;
(6) What about combining REFCO and IB software platforms? An ignorant observer might step over this lightly. This is not a '1 + 1 = 2' play however. If I would have to direct such a software project, I would refuse unless given absolute power to kick things around in the right direction. Why and how? Read points 1 - 5 once over again;
(7) What then, assuming that IB would really acquire REFCO? It ain't going to be a cakewalk.
nononsense