Trading Accounts for Investors

Yes. IRA funds and personal funds must not be commingled in the same account. A new application will need to be completed specifically for the IRA.

Yes. To ensure the trading account is titled to Equity Trust Company Custodian FBO Client Name Equity Trust Account Number, we must be involved with the account establishment. Equity Trust will also need to verify that the correct Trust Tax ID is tied to the account (not your SSN). If you indicated on the forex trading company paperwork that it is to be tied to an IRA account at Equity Trust, they will likely send Equity Trust a copy. Equity Trust will work with you and the forex company to make sure the account is established properly and tied to an IRA.

After the forex account is open and funded by Equity Trust, you will work directly with the forex company to place your trading requests. You can do this through your online access with the forex trading account company or by calling your forex company representative.

No. All funds must flow through your Equity Trust account. If you take funds from your forex trading account directly, this may be deemed a prohibited transaction. Equity Trust has established rules with the forex companies to have them redirect you to Equity Trust whenever you want to remove funds to make sure the movement of funds is properly reported to the IRS.

 Margin requirements will vary by futures and forex company.  Generally, with IRAs, you can have margin, but margins will be stricter/less than you would see in a personal (non-IRA account).  The reason is IRAs cannot personally guarantee funds.  The stricter margin requirements are to make sure your IRA account does not fall into the negative.

Trading commissions fall to the futures/forex company.

Equity Trust only has a charge when you are sending funds to the futures/forex company OR removing funds from the futures/forex company. 

Once funds are in the futures/forex account you will be paying whatever commission the futures/forex company charges.

Unlike the stock market, the forex market is open nearly 24/7 as it is open 24 hours a day from 5 p.m. ET on Sunday until 4 p.m. ET on Friday. This unique timing is because currencies continue to trade in markets worldwide, even after the New York exchange closes. Forex trading opens daily with the Australia/Asia area, followed by Europe, then North America.

New York: 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. ET
Sydney: 5 p.m. – 2 a.m. ET
Tokyo: 7 p.m. – 4 a.m. ET
London: 3 a.m. – 12 p.m. ET

During timezone overlap, liquidity and trade volume increases. The two busiest timezones are New York and London, especially during their overlapping sessions. The New York and London overlap accounts for the majority of this five trillion dollar per day market.

Forex markets are utilized by Banks and other financial institutions to hedge their foreign currency holdings as conditions change globally. Individual investors are also able to participate in these markets.

All trading will be done with the FCM. Equity Trust is responsible for all cash flow record-keeping related to the IRA-owned trading account. Whenever you are looking to add additional funds or remove funds from the forex account, it will need to flow through your Equity Trust account. Equity Trust handles the ongoing tax reporting for contributions & distributions of assets held in your Equity Trust retirement account.

Important to Note: Trading accounts must be held in title by the investor account: Equity Trust Company Custodian FBO Client Name Client Account Number.

To trade using retirement funds, you need an IRA custodian. Equity Trust is best in class in this arena when it comes to value, service and technology.

We have specialized in trading IRA Accounts for over two decades. We are tied in with this industry, we know what brokers and investors need from us so we make it fast and simple every step of the way.