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This webpage supplements IBKR's Form CRS, which is available here.
The following is a Question & Answer format where IBKR responds to the Conversation Starters included in the Form CRS. Each Conversation Starter is written by the SEC and may not apply specifically to IBKR's business model or to the relationship between IBKR and its retail investor clients.
Q. Given my financial situation, should I choose a brokerage service? Why or why not?
IBKR is an online broker that provides self-directed trade execution and clearing services. IBKR offers you the ability to buy and sell investment products like stocks, options, futures, forex, bonds, mutual funds, and others in a brokerage account.
IBKR does not make recommendations regarding account types, products, trading or otherwise. All trading at IBKR is directed by you or your self-selected independent advisor. IBKR does not employ any human "brokers" or "advisors" to manage your account. Please review our website for additional details. If you are unsure whether opening an IBKR account is appropriate for you, please consult a financial professional.
Q. What is your relevant experience, including your licenses, education and other qualifications? What do these qualifications mean?
IBKR is a broker-dealer and member of NYSE, FINRA, CME and SIPC and many exchanges and market centers.
IBKR is regulated by the SEC, FINRA, CFTC, NFA, other Self-Regulatory Organizations, and exchanges.
IBKR employees may hold certain licenses and qualifications. Although some are licensed to do so, IBKR does not allow its employees to make recommendations, offer trading advice or otherwise manage your account. All trading at IBKR is directed by you or your self-selected independent advisor.
Free and simple tools are available to research firms and individuals at investor.gov/crs, where you can also find educational materials about broker-dealers, investment advisers, and investing.
Q. Help me understand how these fees and costs might affect my investments. If I give you $10,000 to invest, how much will go to fees and costs, and how much will be invested for me?
All trading at IBKR is directed by you or your self-selected independent advisor. IBKR does not manage your account and does not charge management fees.
Fees and costs will vary depending on the products you trade, the volume of your trading, and the services and pricing plan you choose. You will pay fees and costs whether you make or lose money on your investments.Fees and costs will reduce any amount of money you make on your investments over time. Please make sure that you understand what fees and costs you are paying. IBKR does not compensate employees based on trades or fees paid by you.
Information regarding specific commissions and fees is found on our website at ibkr.com/commissions and ibkr.com/otherfees.
Q. How might your conflicts of interest affect me, and how will you address them?
IBKR mitigates potential conflicts of interest by applying information barriers and other controls to prevent the disclosure of order and trading information. In particular, in accordance with applicable rules and regulations, IBKR maintains a strong information barrier that keeps your orders and trading information separate from the proprietary trading information of its affiliates.
In addition, IBKR does not provide advice or recommendations to attempt to convince you to purchase, sell or hold a position in any investment product or to use an investment strategy.
IBKR and its affiliates do not sell, distribute, recommend, market, or otherwise encourage you to trade in specific products. IBKR does not act as an investor, placement agent, underwriter, distributor, remarketing agent, structurer, securitizer, investment manager, investment advisor, commodity trading advisor, municipal advisor, market maker, or trader and does not produce any proprietary research.IBKR therefore does not believe that any third-party payments it receives pose a material conflict of interest with you.
Please see ibkr.com/disclosures for additional details.
Q. As a financial professional, do you have any disciplinary history? For what type of conduct?
IBKR is regulated by many regulators: the U.S. SEC, CFTC, FINRA, each of the U.S. stock exchanges and option exchanges, each U.S. state securities regulator, plus several foreign regulators. Some of these regulators have issued fines or other sanctions against IBKR.
Given the scope and breadth of our activities and the number of regulators with jurisdiction over us, we believe our regulatory record is comparable to other major retail brokers in the United States.Visit Investor.gov/CRS for a free and simple search tool to research IBKR and our financial professionals.
Additional information on IBKR's and its financial professionals is available at brokercheck.finra.org.
Q. Who is my primary contact person?
Q. Is he or she a representative of an investment adviser or a broker-dealer?
Q. Who can I talk to if I have concerns about how this person is treating me?
IBKR does not assign registered representatives to manage client accounts. Our registered representatives are employed by IBKR, a broker-dealer, and not by an investment advisor. If you have any concerns regarding the service that you receive you can contact us at (312) 542-6901 or 1 (877) 442-2757.