interesting blog post from April of this year ..
specific to OTC et al
Best Brokers for Small Accounts:
1. Suretrader
I was going to rank the rest of my brokers beyond Suretrader, but there really isn't much point. Suretrader gets you around the Pattern Daytrader Rule, and that is a huge advantage. Costs can be a bit high, which is why it is important you make sure you reduce your commission rate. My number two choice would probably be Interactive Brokers, just because their platform costs and trade costs will be very low. Unfortunately you need to scrape together $10,000 to open an account with them, although you can withdraw most of the money as soon as the account is open. I'm sure there are plenty of other low-cost brokers out there with low account minimums, I just haven't tried them.
Best Brokers for Short Selling:
1. Centerpoint Securities
2. Suretrader
3. Interactive Brokers
If you want locates, these are the only brokers that will be able to get them for you. By far, Centerpoint has the best borrows - it isn't even close. Even if a stock isn't easy to borrow there at the start of the day, there are other ways to get a locate on it. If you want to short-sell pump and dumps, these are the only three brokers to consider.
Best Brokers for OTC Executions:
1. Centerpoint Securities
2. Regal Securities
3. Etrade
4. Speedtrader
5. Interactive Brokers
From what I remember and what I still hear, Suretrader has horrible executions, so they don't even make this list. Speedtrader has lost most of their OTC routes, and their NITE route functions terribly now as well, so they also have dropped quite far down the list. Centerpoint has the best executions, because they have the most OTC routes. They offer routing options to NITE, CSTI, ATDF, CDEL, ARCA, and a few others. Regal is a close second. They don't have quite as many routes, but they have a properly functioning NITE route as well as ARCA and CDEL options. While Etrade won't let you pick specific routes, there is little doubt in my mind that they have better executions than Speedtrader now. They also restrict trading on fewer stocks.
Best Brokers for Trading Cheap Stocks:
1. Regal Securities
2. Etrade
3. Speedtrader
4. Interactive Brokers
If you want to trade sub-penny stocks or anything even remotely cheap, you need a broker that won't eat you alive with routing fees and commissions. Suretrader and Centerpoint are not the brokers for this! Regal does not charge routing fees for most of their routes, so their superior executions earn them the #1 spot on this list. Interactive Brokers makes this list because their commission structure is .005/share OR 0.5% of total trade value, whichever is cheaper. At the end of the day, they will also be a cheaper option than Suretrader or Centerpoint.
so where are suretrader and centerpoint *located*
hmmmm
CenterPoint Securities Clearing
Clearing
CenterPoint Securities offers clearing options with Wedbush and ETC (Electronic Transaction Clearing). For more information on each, please click on the the website links below:
Wedbush Clearing
Electronic Transaction Clearing
CenterPoint Securities Order Routing
Order Routing
In equity trading, the method used to route orders is extremely important because of the potential for small price improvements and in many cases, being able to place the right kind of order during “fast market” periods. Since the equities market is made up of several “sub-markets” (ECN’s and Market Makers, lit and dark markets), a trader’s knowledge in the use of proper order routing to find the liquidity he or she needs to get the order executed is essential. While small price improvements may seemingly have little significance to a particular trade, price inefficiencies in order executions can collectively add up to a significant amount over a long period of time. This is obviously important for extremely active traders.
specific to OTC et al
Best Brokers for Small Accounts:
1. Suretrader
I was going to rank the rest of my brokers beyond Suretrader, but there really isn't much point. Suretrader gets you around the Pattern Daytrader Rule, and that is a huge advantage. Costs can be a bit high, which is why it is important you make sure you reduce your commission rate. My number two choice would probably be Interactive Brokers, just because their platform costs and trade costs will be very low. Unfortunately you need to scrape together $10,000 to open an account with them, although you can withdraw most of the money as soon as the account is open. I'm sure there are plenty of other low-cost brokers out there with low account minimums, I just haven't tried them.
Best Brokers for Short Selling:
1. Centerpoint Securities
2. Suretrader
3. Interactive Brokers
If you want locates, these are the only brokers that will be able to get them for you. By far, Centerpoint has the best borrows - it isn't even close. Even if a stock isn't easy to borrow there at the start of the day, there are other ways to get a locate on it. If you want to short-sell pump and dumps, these are the only three brokers to consider.
Best Brokers for OTC Executions:
1. Centerpoint Securities
2. Regal Securities
3. Etrade
4. Speedtrader
5. Interactive Brokers
From what I remember and what I still hear, Suretrader has horrible executions, so they don't even make this list. Speedtrader has lost most of their OTC routes, and their NITE route functions terribly now as well, so they also have dropped quite far down the list. Centerpoint has the best executions, because they have the most OTC routes. They offer routing options to NITE, CSTI, ATDF, CDEL, ARCA, and a few others. Regal is a close second. They don't have quite as many routes, but they have a properly functioning NITE route as well as ARCA and CDEL options. While Etrade won't let you pick specific routes, there is little doubt in my mind that they have better executions than Speedtrader now. They also restrict trading on fewer stocks.
Best Brokers for Trading Cheap Stocks:
1. Regal Securities
2. Etrade
3. Speedtrader
4. Interactive Brokers
If you want to trade sub-penny stocks or anything even remotely cheap, you need a broker that won't eat you alive with routing fees and commissions. Suretrader and Centerpoint are not the brokers for this! Regal does not charge routing fees for most of their routes, so their superior executions earn them the #1 spot on this list. Interactive Brokers makes this list because their commission structure is .005/share OR 0.5% of total trade value, whichever is cheaper. At the end of the day, they will also be a cheaper option than Suretrader or Centerpoint.
so where are suretrader and centerpoint *located*
hmmmm
CenterPoint Securities Clearing
Clearing
CenterPoint Securities offers clearing options with Wedbush and ETC (Electronic Transaction Clearing). For more information on each, please click on the the website links below:
Wedbush Clearing
Electronic Transaction Clearing
CenterPoint Securities Order Routing
Order Routing
In equity trading, the method used to route orders is extremely important because of the potential for small price improvements and in many cases, being able to place the right kind of order during “fast market” periods. Since the equities market is made up of several “sub-markets” (ECN’s and Market Makers, lit and dark markets), a trader’s knowledge in the use of proper order routing to find the liquidity he or she needs to get the order executed is essential. While small price improvements may seemingly have little significance to a particular trade, price inefficiencies in order executions can collectively add up to a significant amount over a long period of time. This is obviously important for extremely active traders.
