How to Open an Account in Interactive Brokers

Manuel Lalanne

3 Oct, 2024

Manuel Lalanne

3 Oct, 2024

To invest, it’s necessary to open a broker account where you can make transactions safely and dynamically facilitated by a unified platform. The offer of brokers is increasing with the passing of time and the popularization of investments as a way to become wealthy. Today, we will focus on how to open an account in Interactive Brokers with 6 easy-to-follow steps. 

Why Interactive Brokers? We believe it’s a reliable broker where your information and activity will be protected. It’s very intuitive to use and since the beginning of your experience, you’ll realize they take care of their users with the responsibility and seriousness it requires.

If you are just getting started in this passionate world of investments and don’t know how to select your broker or open a broker account, check our first steps section – where we show you how to start to invest in a simple way, accessible to everyone.

  • STEP 1: Create an account

Here, you just have to create a username and password, and confirm your email address from your email account. After that, you can start completing the application.

APPLICATION

  • STEP 2: Select an Account Type

In the first section of the application, you have to select the account type that’s more convenient for your needs and goals. The decision will depend on whether you’re applying as an individual making an occasional investment, a professional and frequent trader, or an institutional investor. Let’s suppose you choose the most common individual account, it’s the best suited account for those unexperienced who want to start investing from savings.

Once you’ve selected the account type best suited for you, it’s time to provide your personal information.

  • STEP 3: About you

In this instance, you have to complete a few steps that contemplate the following information: contact and personal data; identification (ID); employment status and source of wealth; base currency; and three security questions to make your account safer. 

By completing your employment status, you’re sharing your occupational situation, it can be employed, self employed, retired, unemployed, etc. Your response might determine your source of wealth selection; if you are employed, the salary option (“income from employment”) will be pre-selected, but you can choose as many as you please as long as they are verifiable sources of wealth for you. 

  • STEP 4: Regulatory

Next, you’ll go through the regulatory section, where you will be required to answer questions related to your investment goals, risk tolerance, and trading experience.

In this step, you configure your trading account by selecting an account type between cash, margin or portfolio margin. If you select margin and portfolio margin there are more requirements that are related to your financial information. So the most simple option is cash – unless you are planning to invest with leverage or other advanced investment strategies.

By providing your income and net worth as well as your investment objectives and intended purpose of trading, Interactive Brokers (IB) make sure you are legally capable to trade the assets of your choice.

You’ll be asked to set your account preferences, indicating your trading experience and permissions (such as access to global markets), so IB can assess your eligibility and tailor the platform to suit your needs, ensuring compliance with regulatory standards.

  • STEP 5: Account Setup

You’re almost done! The legal aspect is taken care of here: You accept the terms and conditions by reviewing and agreeing to the necessary legal disclosures and documents.

Once you verify your identity and address with a selfie or photo of your id and with your GPS location or another document of your choice, your application will be submitted and approved in a few days.

Finally, when all the steps are completed, IB will review your application. You can monitor your account status directly from your dashboard, where you’ll receive updates on the approval process. And you’ll receive an email notification to confirm that your account is active and ready for use.

Once you have your account approved you’ll be ready to start investing. If you are not sure about how to do it, check our previous article on how to invest in stocks for beginners

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, opening an Interactive Brokers account is a straightforward process that can be completed in a few steps, from creating an account to receiving the final approval. By carefully selecting your account type, providing accurate personal and financial information, and setting up your preferences, you can tailor the platform to suit your investment needs. Once your account is approved, you gain access to a wide range of global markets and trading tools, making IB a powerful platform for both new and experienced investors. 

If you have any doubt about the beginning or the investment process itself, don’t wait any longer and Schedule time with an expert.

Join us! https://theboringinvest.com/#/home

BOOST YOUR INVESTMENT SUBSCRIBE NOW!

Manuel Lalanne

Economist | Experienced Financial Risk consultant My Linkedin

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