1. Open the Finder app. From the top menu Go, select  Connect to Server...  Alternatively, you can press Command + K on the keyboard while the Finder app is open.

2. Type the FTP address ftp://ftp2.interactivebrokers.com in to the Connect to Server field and click Connect.

3. A login dialog window will then appear. Select 'Registered User' for the Connect As field. Enter the FTP username and password IBKR provided you with in to the corresponding fields. Then press Connect.

4. A Finder window will open and you will now have direct access to your FTP folder. Documents and files present there can now be decrypted using your PGP key, as explained in IBKB4210.

Common issues and solutions

A. Could not log in to the FTP server with the username and password specified

Ensure the correct login details are being used to connect to the FTP server. The username and password you are entering should match the ones you have received from the Reporting Integration Team.

B. Connection Timed Out

1. Enable the Passive (PASV) mode for FTP connections. Click on the Apple icon on the top left of your Desktop and choose System Preferences. Launch Network. Select your active network connection, then click on the button Advanced and select the Proxies tab. Activate the option Use Passive FTP mode (PASV). The passive mode is more firewall friendly then the active one, since all the connections are initiated from the Client side. If you are using a specific FTP Client, check its connection settings or advanced settings in order to find and enable the Passive (PASV) mode switch.
2. In case you have an antivirus or a security software installed on your machine, make sure it is not blocking the FTP connection attempt. Normally, security software allow to set up exceptions for specific connections in order to whitelist them.
3. Should the above steps be unable to resolve the issue, ask your network administrator/s to confirm that your firewall allows traffic from/to ftp2.interactivebrokers.com. Note: Your network administrator should consider that every time your FTP Client attempts connecting to our FTP server with Passive mode, it establishes two connections: a command channel (outbound, from random TCP port above 1024 to TCP port 21) and a data channel (outbound, from a random TCP port above 1024 to the TCP port above 1024 which was negotiated through the command channel). Both connections are initiated by the Client side. In the picture below, you can find an example of this connections schema. Please notice that the ports 2000, 3000, 4000 are examples of randomly selected ports and may very well not correspond to the ones used within your specific FTP connection attempt.

 

IBKR offers an automatic trading feature whereby account holders may set up a 'recurring investment' instruction with the cash amount, asset to invest into and the schedule when to invest (e.g. buy 500 USD of IBKR on the 2nd day of the month). Outlined below are a series of FAQs which describe the program and its operation.

1. How can I participate in the program?

Requests to participate are initiated online via Client Portal. Select the Trade menu option followed by Recurring Investments.

2. What accounts are eligible to use IBKR's recurring investment feature?

Recurring investment is available to any client that has fractional share trading enabled and is under IBLLC, IBUK, IBAU, IBCAN, IBCE, IBIE, IBHK, or IBSG.

3. Which securities are eligible for recurring investment?

The recurring investment feature is available for US, Canadian and European stocks/ETFs. Only stocks/ETFs which are tradable in fractions are eligible.

4. When does the investment occur?

The client is able to choose a date and select a schedule on which to invest (e.g. weekly, monthly, quarterly, etc.). Trades are executed soon after open on the start date and continue on future dates based upon the schedule selected. If the market is closed on the scheduled recurring investment date (e.g.: holiday, weekend) then the recurring investment will be scheduled for the next open market date. If the schedule of monthly, quarterly, or yearly is selected and the recurring investment date does not exist for the month (e.g.: February 29th) then the last date of the month will be used. Please note, there is no guarantee that modifying the recurring investment on the scheduled day of investment will be reflected in your trading activity for that day.

5. What is the minimum amount required to invest when setting up a recurring investment?

The minimum investment amount for a recurring investment is 10 for all currencies except SEK which has a minimum of 100. The minimum investment amount will be displayed to clients in Client Portal if the amount they enter is less than the required minimum.

6. At what price does reinvestment take place?

As shares are purchased in the open market, the price cannot be determined until the total number of shares for all program participants have been purchased using combined funds. Each aggregate order will result in one or more market orders. In the event that the purchase is executed in multiple smaller trades at varying prices, participants will receive the weighted-average price of such shares (i.e., each participant receives the same price).

Recurring investments are filled through Volume-Weighted Average Price (VWAP) orders submitted on a best-effort basis at market open on each scheduled purchase date. The time in force suspends the same day at the close of the market. All customers with recurring investments in the same security on the same date receive the same average price on their investment. If markets are closed on a scheduled recurring investment date, due to a weekend or holiday, recurring investment orders will be placed the next trading day. If there is a partial fill, clients will receive shares valued at less than the requested amount and the next scheduled purchase date will be increased by the instructed frequency. If no fill occurs (IBKR is unable to purchase shares on that trading day) the client experience will be the same as if the markets are closed: recurring investment orders will be placed the next trading day without increasing the next scheduled purchase date.

7. Is the recurring investment program subject to a commission charge?

Yes, Standard Commissions as listed on the IBKR website are applied for the purchase. Commissions are charged based on the Currency and the Region the security is traded on. Please note that the minimum commission charge is the lesser of the stated minimums (USD 1 for the Fixed structure) or 1% of the trade value. 

8. What happens if my account is subject to a margin deficiency when the recurring investment occurs?

If your account is in a margin deficit and cannot initiate new positions, the recurring investment will not occur, even if you have the feature enabled. A Deposit Hold can cause a recurring investment to be rejected. The trade will only occur if free cash is available. Clients that are borrowing on margin cannot use the recurring investment feature until they have free cash. Please note that recurring investment orders are credit-checked at the time of entry.  Should an account go into margin deficiency at any time after that, including as a result of the end-of-day SMA check and the end-of-day Soft Edge Margin, the account will become subject to automated liquidation.

9. What happens if my account does not have enough funds at the time of the recurring investment?

The system will check the account 3 business days prior to the next occurrence of the recurring investment and if the account is lacking funds then a notification will be sent to the client. If on the occurrence date the account still lacks the funds, the occurrence date will be incremented by the frequency (e.g.: if monthly, update to next month). If on the next occurrence date the account again lacks funds then the instruction will be canceled.

10. Will I receive whole shares or fractional shares?

When using the Recurring Investment program you will receive fractional shares equivalent to the cash amount specified.

11. What are the tax considerations associated with recurring investment?

The purchase of a shares via recurring investment is similar to that of any other share purchase for purposes of tax reporting. 

12. Where can I see the recurring investments I have set up?

The "Recurring Investments" screen in Client Portal will display a grid with your current active recurring investment plans.

Please note that open recurring investment instructions are not visible on the Trader Workstation (TWS) or IBKR Mobile order screens. Submitting orders from these platforms will increase your exposure beyond that scheduled for your recurring investment. Your open recurring investment orders are visible in Client Portal from both the Portfolio and Trade > Orders & Trades menus.

13. What happens if I don't hold the currency the stock is denominated in?

If you don't hold the currency the stock is denominated in, IBKR will auto-convert currencies to complete the trade.

14. What happens if my recurring investment involves a security that is no longer available?

Your recurring investment will be cancelled. When a pending order involves a security that is the subject of a reverse split or merger, or a security that is delisted, the order will be cancelled.

15. How do I cancel a Recurring Investment order?

To "Cancel" an open Recurring Investment, login to the Client Portal and select the Trade menu option followed by Recurring Investments. Find the line with the security of the recurring investment you want to cancel and on the right side of the row click on the "X". Then in the next pop up, click on the button to "Confirm Cancel" of the recurring investment.

Why become a Professional Investor?

Professional Investors are considered as having sufficient capital, experience and a net worth that lets them engage in more advanced types of investment opportunities, including products such as FX Swaps, ChiNext, or virtual assets.

Generally, Professional Investors do not need to liquidate investment assets in the short term and can experience a loss of their investment without damaging their overall net worth.

Which products are available to Professional Investors?

We are constantly expanding the selection of investments available to clients and periodically adding new products and services that are only available to Professional Investors.

The following products are currently available:

How do I qualify as a Professional Investor in Hong Kong?

To qualify as a Professional Investor, you must meet or exceed prescribed financial thresholds, which vary by client category:

* If you are a joint account holder, you must represent and warrant to Interactive Brokers Hong Kong (IBHK) that you and the other account holder are married or parent/ child and that there is no written agreement between you and the other account holder which governs the sharing of your joint portfolio. If you and the other account holder are not married or parent/ child, or if an agreement exists which governs the sharing of your joint portfolio, you must immediately notify IBHK.

What are the risks of becoming a Professional Investor?

Professional Investors are not afforded some of the protections given to general retail investors. In particular, IBHK is not required to fulfill certain requirements under the Code of Conduct and other Hong Kong regulations when providing services to Professional Investors. These include, but aren’t limited to, rules restricting or prohibiting the issuance of advertisements, the making of unsolicited calls and the communication of an offer in relation to securities.

IBHK recommends that prospective Professional Investors obtain independent professional advice, if deemed necessary, in relation to the consequences of being treated as a professional investor (including those set forth in the SFO and the Code of Conduct).

How can I opt out of being classified as Professional Investors?

Professional Investors have the flexibility to withdraw their consent at any point in time by changing their PI classification to “Non Professional Investor” via the Account Settings in Portal Once changed, PI-related trading permissions will be immediately removed and existing open positions will be set to “Closing- Only”. You may continue to hold or close existing position of these exclusive products but cannot expand or open new positions.

You may also cease to be classified as Professional Investor if you take no action to validate your eligibility during IBHK’s annual Professional Investor review. A notification email will be sent to you if your classification is not aligned to the PI financial threshold.

Professional Investor status is subject to IBHK’s validation of your assets. Investing in financial products and services is subject to IBHK’s eligibility and suitability criteria.