Penson - What's this all about?

MBT-Steve,

How long before the Press Release hit that Penson was forming this Apex Clearing entity did you find out about the change? Did they ask for your opinion on the change before announcing it?
 
Quote from jackpearson:

didn't Penson keep everyone's money in seperate accounts at JP Morgan? (I may be wrong, if so correct me)

Where does each customer's money sit now that this Apex Clearing took over the accounts?
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Apex clearing uses JP Morgan as their banker, but the money is not segregated. Margin accounts are not segregated. The current situation with Apex clearing is that you have a Prime Broker with 5x regulatory excess capital, almost no debt, manged by Peak 6 and run by all the Penson employees offering an excellent, safe place to trade. The Penson holding company still owns most of the firm, but the broker is now completely insulated from all the Penson debt. If the holding company were to go bankrupt, Apex would be insulated. Broadridge Clearing took a big hit here. Most of their debt and contracts were written off.
 
Quote from MBT-Steve:

JB3....

As you may have seen over the years I am here to help clarify issues if they arise in regards to MBT. I suppose now would be one of those times. I think in this case you may have missed the mark a little but I understand where you are coming from. Penson in the recent quarters has been under pressure as to their viability. This is when most expressed concern and fairly so. Now that Penson has formed a partnership with Peak6 and Broadridge, which jointly carries billions on the balance sheet, it seems this would be more the time for comfort and relief. This creates an entity that appears to be very stable going forward while shedding the concerns of late. In any case, regardless of what anyone says or does, you should always do what makes you the most comfortable. I never want to lose a customer by any means but again, you should always do what gives you the greatest comfort level. That being said if I can help you in any way please do not hesitate to private msg me. Im happy to discuss further. I hope to see you stay on as a customer as I think the concerns about Penson are behind us but if you are not able to I certainly understand.

Regards,

Steve
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FWIW, just a note of support. My interactiona over the years with Steve and Ross have always been solid and straight. I have openly admitted to not having that same comfort level with Penson, although having spent much time with Dan Son and Lynal Carey (nice people)... but if Steve is comfortable in their relationship with the new entities, then I think all is good.

I'm actually considering opening up a couple of accounts with MBTrading, for several reasons.

Don
 
Quote from MBT-Steve:

JB3....

As you may have seen over the years I am here to help clarify issues if they arise in regards to MBT. I suppose now would be one of those times. I think in this case you may have missed the mark a little but I understand where you are coming from. Penson in the recent quarters has been under pressure as to their viability. This is when most expressed concern and fairly so. Now that Penson has formed a partnership with Peak6 and Broadridge, which jointly carries billions on the balance sheet, it seems this would be more the time for comfort and relief. This creates an entity that appears to be very stable going forward while shedding the concerns of late. In any case, regardless of what anyone says or does, you should always do what makes you the most comfortable. I never want to lose a customer by any means but again, you should always do what gives you the greatest comfort level. That being said if I can help you in any way please do not hesitate to private msg me. Im happy to discuss further. I hope to see you stay on as a customer as I think the concerns about Penson are behind us but if you are not able to I certainly understand.
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Steve,

I haven't received any communication from MBT at all regarding this. I received a one page mailed letter from Penson this Tuesday telling me that Penson futures would be transferring my account to Knight (the letter was sent so late that it was after-the-fact).

I think MBT could do a better job of keeping its customers informed about what is going on.
 
Jack P....

About 24 hours or so I think. My opinion wasn't relevent to their decision. From everything that I can see it looks to be very positive for everyone.

Regards,

Steve
 
GTS...

We did send an email to all account holders. If you want me to research what happened in your case I would be happy to. Just PM your name please and I will folllow up.

Regards,

Steve
 
Quote from MBT-Steve:

We did send an email to all account holders. If you want me to research what happened in your case I would be happy to. Just PM your name please and I will folllow up.
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Steve, my apologies, I checked my backup email account (gmail) which receives a copy of emails sent to my primary and it was indeed there, sent June 5th. Thanks.
 
In hindsight, all this knashing of teeth seemed unwarranted. Particularly by those who had no skin in the game. Other than spouting their opinion. Not every situation results in an unwelcome ending. MF Global certainly has gotten everyone's attention, however they were activily trading on their own behalf, and individuals responsible should be made accountable. But it appears they will skate based on political connections. We shall see.
 
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