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Best Online Broker?!

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Aussiest

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Hi everyone,

Who do you think is the best online broker in terms of the following (first 4 an absolute must). I am looking for a highly user-friendly platform:

Fast
Efficient
Reliable (does not crash)
Usable

Must be able to trade short on as many shares as possible.

CFD facility a must (long and short).

A bonus:

Intraday charting facilities
No fancy Flash animation (like Comsec now has)
Good customer service

These are my thoughts so far:

1. Etrade: too many bugs, margin lending holds onto my stocks when i cancel order and then replace it. Overall, disatisfied.

2. Comsec: Quite usable, but has slowed down since upgrade, can't use CBA shares as security for margin lending, can't go short on CBA, not sure about CFDs. Quite expensive: charge $10.00 transaction fee on every transaction. Big bonus: iphone platform.

3. MQ Prime: this is my favourite so far. Can go short on a variety of stocks, can trade CDFs on same platform, but can't go short on MQG. Apparently, they are working on a similiar concept to Comsec's iphone platform, although no details provided.

4. MF Global: Not too impressed

5. CMC markets: for CFD trading only, seems good. Can trade just about everything, can go short on my 'preferred' stocks. Doubts: don't like handing my money over to a non-banking institution.

Possibilities: Use MQ Prime as my main broker, with a small deposit at CMC markets, so i can go short on MQG.

Or maybe Comsec for the iphone, and small account with CMC...

Any other brokers? Your thoughts?

Martine
 
Martine you may want to familiarize yourself with the search function. There are already lots of threads with this same questions asked. You would probably be better finding and reading them rather than asking the same Q's again.

If they give you no satisfaction you could aleast tack on the end of an existing thread if its similar.

Cheers
 
Yes, i've just had a look through them. Sometimes they're out of date, which means new technologies haven't come into play, eg, Comsec's iphone.

I guess i'll just have to keep doing my research.
 
Hi Aussiest,

For CFD's I'd recommend avoiding the 'Market Makers', so that rules out CMC for starters. DMA (Direct Market Access) is the best way to go.

Take a look at FP Markets. After doing all my research, I joined up with them recently. They do shares, CFD's, futures, forex, warrants. They have the largest short list, with lowest margins, of anyone I looked at. Uses webIRESS platform, so has live, dynamically updated data. Platform (incl. data fee) costs $55 per month though (unless you do 15 (I think) trades per month). They told me they also have a free product called 'FP Online', but that doesn't update prices dynamically.
 
Thanks Alterego,

I may end up using them for some CFDs, but use Comsec or MQ Prime as main broker.

FP Markets do not margin lend, so that rules out share trading (not that i'll be taking high margins, but it's a good back-up).
 
Hi Aussiest

have you had a look at

'Spectrum Live'

Its the best platform that i have found yet.

Let me know if you find anything better

Cheers Banjo Smyth
 
Best Online Stock Broker

Hi
For us amateurs / casual traders. Please which Best Online Stock Broker is the best? And why?
I've used Commsec ($29.95) then I find other with less fees such as Bell Direct ($15). Do these 2 & others provide the same services. Thanks!
 
Re: Best Online Stock Broker

If you have a linked cash account at Commsec then it's $19.95 for trades under $10k. You get real time data and some research.
To get real time data at Bell Direct you have to pay $10 a month. So if you want real time data you have to trade at least three times a month for Bell Direct to be cheaper.

I use margin and keep funds in other accounts so I use Commsec. Though I just checked and Bell Direct now offer margin via a linked third party account.

There are other costs in trading, though for a newbie they probably don't mater, but slippage and execution times can cost a significant amount.

Here's a list of brokers
http://www.infochoice.com.au/investment/investment-broker/online-brokers.aspx
 
For me the best combination is Interactive Brokers (main) + IG Markets (CFDs) + CommSec (real time quote + research), seems to work quite well
 
Online Broker

Just wondering which online broker you prefer?

Comsec?
Etrade?
R there others?
 
Re: Online Broker

Forget IB - not for beginners.

CMC stockbroking has a good quick website and cheap brokerage.
 
Re: Online Broker

CanOz said:
Interactive Brokers

Www.interactivebrokers.com
Click to expand...

Me too. Can't beat them for their low commissions and margin rates.

I just bought 25 Apple last night on margin - a trade costing over $11.5K USD. Total commission 1USD. Margin Interest 1.64%. This is less than the dividend yield on Apple which at the current price is 2.62%.
 
Re: Online Broker

Gringotts Bank said:
Forget IB - not for beginners.

CMC stockbroking has a good quick website and cheap brokerage.
Click to expand...

Sheesh GB, give them some credit. I was a beginner when i switched to IB from eTrade and IG Markets...

CanOz
 
Re: Online Broker

Forget IB - not for beginners.
Click to expand...

I tend to agree + customer service is not great in my experience.
Also for a beginner most don't have $10k to open an account (I think its $2.5k if your under 25)
 
Re: Online Broker

waza1960 said:
I tend to agree + customer service is not great in my experience.
Also for a beginner most don't have $10k to open an account (I think its $2.5k if your under 25)
Click to expand...

Agree on the customer service, but seriously...what are people doing playing in the financial markets with less than 10k?? Sure, maybe FX....micro lots etc...

CanOz
 
Re: Online Broker

but seriously...what are doing playing in the financial markets with less than 10k?? Sure, maybe FX....micro lots etc...
Click to expand...

For a beginner assuming the OP is one then less to lose LOL
 
Re: Online Broker

CanOz said:
Agree on the customer service, but seriously...what are people doing playing in the financial markets with less than 10k?? Sure, maybe FX....micro lots etc...

CanOz
Click to expand...

seriously , what are beginners doing paying $20 a trade for the sizes they talk about trading ?

its a catch 22; with only 10k they really need IB's commission rates especially the low minimum, but they dont need IB's user unfriendliness. With more experience and presumably bigger position sizes, bigger minimum commissions are less of a penalty, but now they should be able to drive IB anyway and might as well have the lower commissions.

Bottom line if I had 10k and was a beginner again, probably I would rather take my chances with IB and be able to trade small size without the prohibitive negative edge of a $40 commission per round trip.
 
Can't believe if never taken IB seriously before.

Im applying now.

0.08% is bloody fantastic and chops my average brokerage into a third! Not to mention having access to margin funds at ~4.5% as opposed to ~8%.

Is there something I am missing here?? I think there is a $15 withdrawal fee, but anything else?
 
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