E-Trading - FAQ's

Is there a minimum balance required for opening an account?
No. There is no minimum account balance required to open an account with Synergy. However, in order to use Margin you need to have at least $2,000 in your account and Daytrading accounts must have $25,000.

What is Margin?
Regulations established by the Federal Reserve and individual Exchanges outline the initial and maintenance equity requirements for customer accounts held at brokerage firms. In order to use margin and borrow money from Synergy to invest, your account needs to have at least $2,000 in equity. When you make an investment through a margin enabled account, you can borrow up to 50% of your investment. The value of that investment can then decrease without the need of additional deposit of funds as long as your equity stays, in most cases, above 40% (maintenance requirements).

Can I write checks from my Synergy account? Can I get a debit card?
Check writing and debit cards are available on all accounts except IRAs and UTMA/UGMA accounts. No account value minimum is required for check writing, but minimum account equity of $10,000 is required for the debit card. Client cannot be an active daytrader and cannot wire funds out of the account after receiving the debit card. There is no fee for Check writing privileges; however there is an annual fee of $30 for a debit card. Please complete the PenFlex Form to apply.

Can I earn interest in my Synergy account?
Yes, there are a variety of money market funds through Scudder, including municipal and overseas.

Can I receive account statements electronically?
Account statements can be viewed online through the Penson Connection and you can elect to have account statements and trade confirmations sent to you electronically.

Can I trade OTC bulletin boards, pink sheets or penny stocks?
Synergy clients can trade all OTCBB, pink sheet, and penny stocks. You may need to complete the Penny Stock Paperwork before you purchase these types of securities. Please contact your Customer Service Representative for more information.

Can I transfer an account or assets from another firm?
Yes, simply fill out an Account Transfer Form (ACAT) and send it in with your account paperwork. Transfers normally take 5 to 10 business days to process.

Who do you clear through?
All transactions clear through Penson Financial Services, a publicly traded company. More information on Penson Financial Services can be found at Penson Connections.

How long does it take for a personal check to be posted to my account?
Personal checks are usually posted on the next business day from when they were deposited. All checks over $25,000 are held in special subscription for 5 business days until the check clears.

When will the software charges start for my new account?
Software charges are assessed at the end of each month for clients who are using one of our four trading platforms.

Can I trade before and after normal market hours?
Yes, you can execute orders from 8 am EST to 5 pm EST.

What type of internet connection is required?
Connections as low as 14.4K have been used by our clients, however, we suggest a broadband connection whenever possible. Your ability to quickly connect and communicate with the trading software can be critical and may mean the difference between an order getting executed or not.

Is my account insured?
Your investment account is insured by the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC), which provides customers with insurance protection for amounts up to $500,000 each, with a limitation of $100,000 on claims for cash balances. For important information regarding SIPC, please visit www.sipc.org.

Penson Financial Services, Inc. has also acquired “Excess SIPC” insurance from a third party insurer to protect client accounts up to their net equity for loss of securities and cash held at Penson Financial Services, Inc., up to an overall firm aggregate of US $200,000,000 over all customer accounts. This “Excess SIPC” protection is in addition to the protection provided by the Securities and Investors Protection Act, which is administered by SIPC, and is subject to certain conditions and limitations, details of which are available upon request. The above coverage does not protect against loss of the market value of securities.