TD Ameritrade

TD Ameritrade is an American broker that has been serving clients for more than 40 years. It is based in Omaha, Nebraska. The company was founded in 1975 as First Omaha Securities. Over the years, it has grown through mergers and acquisitions of other brokerage companies. It has consolidated and acquired several additional funds, including Ameritrade, TD Waterhouse, and Scottrade.

On November 25, 2024, Charles Schwab announced the acquisition of TD Ameritrade in a stock deal worth approximately $ 26 billion. The deal closed on October 6, 2024. At the time of closing, the combined company had approximately $ 6 trillion in assets and 28 million brokerage accounts. Charles Schwab estimates that the integration will take 18 to 36 months from the closing of the transaction, during which time TD Ameritrade operates as a separate brokerage company.

Is TD Ameritrade a Regulated Broker?

TD Ameritrade is regulated by the securities and exchange Commission(SEC), the commodity futures trading Commission (CFTC), the financial industry Regulatory authority (FINRA), the Hong Kong securities and futures Commission (SFC) and the Monetary authority of Singapore (MAS).

How are you protected?

All TD Ameritrade customers are covered by an American investor protection scheme called SIPC. The SIPC investor protection scheme protects against the loss of funds and securities in the event of a broker's bankruptcy. The SIPC protection limit is $ 500,000, including $ 250,000 in cash. This amount is significantly higher than the amount provided by most national investor protection schemes. In addition, TD Ameritrade has an additional insurance policy for assets not covered by SIPC, which provides total insurance coverage of up to $ 152 million (including $ 2 million in cash) per customer.

However, not all investments are protected by SIPC. In General, SIPC covers stocks, bonds, mutual funds and other securities, but does not cover Forex, futures, commodities and options. In addition, TD Ameritrade does not provide protection against negative balance.

What is the maximum leverage in TD Ameritrade?

TD Ameritrade offers a maximum leverage of up to 1: 30.

What types of accounts does TD Ameritrade offer?

TD Ameritrade provides standard trading accounts for Forex, futures and options trading. The broker also offers managed portfolios for those who want to invest in stocks and other assets without the need for self-trading. In addition, the broker offers the following types of accounts.

Commissions and fees

The Commission for online trading of stocks and ETFs is $ 0, regardless of the number of shares purchased and your account balance. The Commission for trading options is only $ 0.65 per contract. For Forex instruments, the Commission is included in the spread. There are no fees for using the platforms, accessing market data, or inactivity of the account.

TD Ameritrade trading platforms

TD Ameritrade offers a web-based platform for simplified trading and A Thinkorswim desktop platform for advanced traders. This platform offers a demo account, includes the mood of traders, chat rooms, customizable alerts, social trading and analytical tools. For those who want to trade on the go, you can use the Thinkorswim mobile app.

Trading instruments

The brokerage company offers almost all possible investment options. Its products include common and preferred stocks, bonds, mutual funds, ETFs, futures, options, commodities, cryptocurrencies and Forex currency pairs. The disadvantage of the broker is that you can only trade stocks and ETFs in the us market.

What countries does TD Ameritrade accept traders from?

TD Ameritrade is mainly focused on customers from the United States. However, the broker also serves clients from China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand. Canadian customers can use TD Direct Investing solutions within TD Group, but not TD Ameritrade. Please note that the services offered may differ from the country in which you live. For example, clients from Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore cannot trade mutual funds or currencies, but only stocks, ETFs and options.

Deposit replenishment methods

Deposit replenishment and withdrawal are only possible via cheques, Bank transfer and ACH. TD Ameritrade does not accept credit / debit cards or e-wallets for money transfers. The broker does not charge additional fees for deposits and withdrawals. The exception is a Bank transfer, which costs$25.

What is the minimum Deposit with TD Ameritrade?

TD Ameritrade completely lacks a minimum Deposit for US customers. Those who are interested in margin trading should remember that this type of trading increases the minimum Deposit to $ 2000. In addition, the minimum Deposit for non-US customers may be higher. For example, for customers from Malaysia and Singapore, the minimum Deposit is $ 3,500.

Conclusions

TD Ameritrade is one of the largest online brokers in the United States. It does not charge a Commission for transactions with stocks and ETFs, and offers a wide range of trading instruments, including Forex, futures, commodities and cryptocurrency. Thinkorswim is one of the best desktop trading platforms on the market. Customer service at a high level.

However, TD Ameritrade has some drawbacks. It does not accept credit / debit cards and e-wallets for money transfers, is mainly aimed at US customers, and stocks and ETFs cover only the domestic market.

Before opening an account with this broker, we recommend that you visit our rating of Forex brokers and read the reviews of TD Ameritrade.