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TD Ameritrade group includes several related companies.
TD Ameritrade CA - located in Canada, regulated by the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC).
TD Ameritrade US - located in the USA, regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
TD Ameritrade SG - located in Singapore, authorized by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).
TD Ameritrade HK - located in Hong Kong, regulated by the Securities & Futures Commission (SFC).
And some more, it's a bit difficult to present the full list.
Be aware, most of the companies have certain trading restrictions because of regulatory authorities influence.
TD Ameritrade group accepts clients from all over the world, excluding Australia, UK, EU countries, Japan, Saudi Arabia and some other jurisdictions where restrictions apply.
Broker offers a huge amount of assets for trading:
Currencies, Cryptocurrencies, Stocks, Options, ETFs, Mutual Funds, Futures, Bonds, IPOs etc.
The full list can be found on their Thinkorswim trading platform.
Set up all the way back in 1975, TD Ameritrade is today one of the world’s largest financial services companies, with more than 12 million client accounts as of 2020. The brokerage is headquartered in the US state of Nebraska, and accepts clients from most parts of the world, with the notable exception of countries in the EU, the UK, Australia, and some other countries.
Being based out of the US, TD Ameritrade is obviously fully regulated, overseen by highly reputable regulatory agencies like the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) in the US. In addition, TD Ameritrade is also regulated in a range of other countries through a large network of international subsidiaries, including in financial hubs such as Singapore and Hong Kong.
As one of the world’s largest and most popular online stock & forex brokerages, TD Ameritrade offers an outstanding selection of trading instruments covering nearly all asset classes. This includes individual US stocks, as well as popular forex pairs, options, exchange traded funds (ETFs), mutual funds, commodity futures, cryptocurrencies, bonds & other fixed income securities, and certain annuities.
As opposed to many other brokers we have reviewed here on FX-List, TD Ameritrade offers these assets as the real underlying asset, and not in the form of CFDs that are often offered by online brokers in Europe and other places outside the US.
Further, it’s also important to note that stocks, ETFs, and options are traded 100% commission-free on TD Ameritrade. This can be a huge benefit for small traders in particular, although it is known that the broker still earns revenue from various other fees. According to the broker’s Wikipedia page, TD Ameritrade also earns substantial amounts of money from the somewhat controversial practice of selling its client order flow to third parties.
In terms of trading and investment accounts, TD Ameritrade offers clients the choice between quite a few different account types depending on the jurisdiction a client falls under. For the US-based branch of the broker, these accounts include a Standard account, a Retirement account, an Education account especially designed for saving for education, a Specialty account for companies and trusts, a Managed Portfolio account, as well as a Margin Trading account that increases buying power in the market by up to 50%.
Worth noting, however, is that these account types are not necessarily available for clients from countries other than the US. For international clients who trade under for example the Singapore branch, the choice is much simpler, with only an Individual account or a Joint account to choose between.
As with almost all brokers, trading and investment accounts can easily be funded by making a bank wire transfer to the broker, whether the transfer is made from overseas or from within the United States. Additionally, US users can also fund their accounts with ACH transfer or by depositing a check, while international users in some jurisdictions can fund their accounts through local bank transfers in their country.
Although the broker makes it clear that there is no minimum deposit required to open an account, a deposit of at least USD 2,000 is needed in order to access margin and options trading.
In addition to having an incredibly large selection of trading assets, TD Ameritrade also stands out when it comes to the trading platforms it offers. As a broker that started out with a focus on traditional stock trading, TD Ameritrade does not offer the popular MetaTrader platforms, but instead has its own lineup of proprietary multi-asset trading platforms. This includes TD Ameritrade’s Classic and Next Gen web platforms, as well as the famous and more advanced thinkorswim platform for web, desktop, and mobile.
Lastly, TD Ameritrade’s customer support can be reached via phone, either from within the US or from abroad. Phone support is available in English, Spanish, and Chinese. In other countries, the broker can also be reached via messaging apps like WhatsApp and WeChat.
All in all, we believe it’s safe to say that TD Ameritrade is one of the best-known and longest running brokerages that are active in the market today. Although it differs somewhat from the many CFD & forex brokers we have reviewed, it could still be a good choice for stock traders who are focused on the US stock market. For access to global stock markets, however, other brokers may be better suited.
