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RIP Thinkorswim
- Thread starter Eliot Hosewater
- Start date
Quote from opt789:
I talked to Scott about them wanting to keep futures traders or not, and they are unequivocally interested in keeping them and getting new ones. Well that is a nice idea, but if they continue to put out quotes that are behind and overreact with their very high margins then it will be hard to get anyone. The problem is that IB and TOS donât really have any competition, if they did they would both be better. What other firms give you one platform to trade everything?
It depends where TDA wants to take this. If they want to compete with (1) Schwab or ETrade, or they want to compete with (2) IB and a few others. If (1), then they don't need to worry that much about data speed and futures margin. If (2), then it was crazy to raise margin on futures, especially when commissions are not all that cheap along with data feed delays. But, if I had to guess which direction they are going, I choose door (1).
Quote from JSHINV:
It depends where TDA wants to take this. If they want to compete with (1) Schwab or ETrade, or they want to compete with (2) IB and a few others. If (1), then they don't need to worry that much about data speed and futures margin. If (2), then it was crazy to raise margin on futures, especially when commissions are not all that cheap along with data feed delays. But, if I had to guess which direction they are going, I choose door (1).
TDAT's business model has been and now is what you describe as (1). I do not see that changing. The $9.99 ticket charge per equity order fits their model and is here to stay in my opinion. I see TOS being negatively impacted by this acquisition in the longer time frame. TDAT will try to not "rock the boat" with respect to TOS for a couple of years to give TDAT management a chance to get a good feel for what they want to do with the TOS part of the business within the TDAT overall strategy. I hope fore but do not expect a better outcome.
Did no one else get the letter a couple weeks ago that said: "By the middle of August, there will be no need to transfer funds between your futures account and stock/options account, because all will be handled and displayed out of one account" (?) (paraphrasing - can get it out & read verbatim if need . . ).
I took that to mean that they would be up & running as an FCM by this vague "middle of August" target date.
I assumed that they sent it out to try to keep their futures customers from bailing, b/c Penson looks so terrible.
There's a TDA office down the street from me - I meant to stop in & ask if anyone knows when TDA clearing aims to be operational as an FCM - but I don't have high expectations that anyone will really know.
I took that to mean that they would be up & running as an FCM by this vague "middle of August" target date.
I assumed that they sent it out to try to keep their futures customers from bailing, b/c Penson looks so terrible.
There's a TDA office down the street from me - I meant to stop in & ask if anyone knows when TDA clearing aims to be operational as an FCM - but I don't have high expectations that anyone will really know.
BTW, regarding TDAT's status as an FCM, they called today to say that everything should be up & running by this Friday (8/26), and that the segregated-accounts thing is over (& the relationship with Penson, too). So we'll see what happens . .
I'm sure they called everybody else, too - but I put up this note because I don't know if this is being rolled out in stages, or if all the futures clients are being converted at the same time.
I'm sure they called everybody else, too - but I put up this note because I don't know if this is being rolled out in stages, or if all the futures clients are being converted at the same time.
WHY did they merge in the first place?.. If I have to pay 9.99 per trade I'm closing my account...which I REALLY don't want to do, but 9.99 per ticket is crazy. Sorry.
I believe this is not correct.Quote from ddouglas:
BTW, regarding TDAT's status as an FCM, they called today to say that everything should be up & running by this Friday (8/26), and that the segregated-accounts thing is over (& the relationship with Penson, too). So we'll see what happens . .
I'm sure they called everybody else, too - but I put up this note because I don't know if this is being rolled out in stages, or if all the futures clients are being converted at the same time.
The only thing they are working on is to get the automatic sweep from your margin account back and forth to your Penson futures account set up again.
Penson will be clearing their futures trades for awhile.
Quote from opt789:
. . . Penson will be clearing their futures trades for awhile.
Hmm . .
I specifically asked if Penson was going away, and the guy on the other end of the line said "yes, that's exactly what is happening."
I didn't pry any further (though maybe I should have). Tomorrow I will call them back and try to clarify.
However, just now I checked their FCM registration on the NFA website, and they are showing as registered and active as both an FCM and a Forex Firm - with the Forex Firm status only being activated at the end of July (approx 30 days ago).
The NFA website status lists them as having currently open "on-exchange futures and/or options customer accounts."
Here's the link:
http://www.nfa.futures.org/basicnet/Details.aspx?entityid=alDHAOLl6ZY=&rn=Y
And the NFA ID: 0382533
Will post if I find out anything new when I talk to them tommorrow . .
I have heard that eventually Penson will not be used and they will be their own FCM, but it sounded like it was a little ways off. The email I received yesterday to my inquiry regarding this stated âThanks for the email. We are still using Penson for futures trading.âQuote from ddouglas:
Hmm . .
I specifically asked if Penson was going away, and the guy on the other end of the line said "yes, that's exactly what is happening."