Interactive Brokers Group Inc. has merged its two EU investment firms into a single Irish-licensed entity.

  1. When did the change happen?

    Interactive Brokers Ireland Limited (IBIE) and Interactive Brokers Central Europe Zrt. (IBCE) merged into a single Irish-licensed entity on 1 August 2024. All formerly IBCE clients are automatically IBIE clients as of this date.

  1. Can you explain why you are making this change?

    Merging IBIE and IBCE will allow us to focus on meeting one set of regulatory requirements and provide a consistent product offering throughout the EEA, while continuing to achieve our goals including providing clients with high quality investment services.

    By way of background, in the lead-up to Brexit, Interactive Brokers Group Inc. (IBKR) created two strong investment firms in the EEA, IBIE and IBCE, to provide on-line execution and clearing services to its clients.

    While these firms allowed us to service our EEA clients and significantly expand our business, IBKR made the strategic decision to integrate those two firms into one entity, regulated in Ireland, while retaining a significant operational services presence in Hungary, in addition to software development services.

  1. How does the Merger impact investment services provided to IBIE clients?

    IBIE’s clients are not impacted by the Merger.

  1. How does the Merger impact investment services provided to IBCE clients?

    Since the Merger Date, IBCE client accounts are serviced by and through IBIE. In the weeks following the Merger, former clients of IBCE will be given a new account with access to IBIE’s full offering, including additional currencies, OTC Spot Metals and OTC Futures on LME Metals. We will notify you when your new account is in force.

  1. Am I able to continue trading on the basis of my existing contractual arrangements with IBCE after the Merger?

    Yes, but only for a short period. You will need to agree to all relevant IBIE agreements and disclosures if you wish to continue to trade with IBIE on an on-going basis post-merger.

    You can review and sign these documents and disclosures, via a login task in the Client Portal.

  1. Did the Merger cause any changes to my existing contractual arrangements with IBCE?

    Yes, we have made some amendments to your existing contractual arrangements with IBCE, to reflect the fact of the Merger. We have informed you of these amendments in a separate communication and they have applied since the date of the Merger.

  1. Can you provide more information about IBIE?

    IBIE is a wholly owned subsidiary within IBKR and is authorised and regulated as an investment firm by the Central Bank of Ireland pursuant to the MiFID 2 Directive (Directive 2014/65/EU).

    You can find additional information about IBIE on its website, at https://www.interactivebrokers.ie/en/home.php, including its contact information as well as information about the Central Bank of Ireland.

  1. As a former IBCE customer, did my commissions/fees change because of the Merger?

    No. Commissions and fees have not changed because your account is now with IBIE. You can find further information on the commissions and fees charged by IBIE on the pricing section of IBIE’s website.

  1. Does IBIE offer a Cash Yield Enhancement Program (“CYEP”)?

    As IBIE is permitted to pay interest on the funds held in your account, it does not offer a CYEP.

    The interest rates paid by IBIE may differ from the rates that previously applied in IBCE’s CYEP.

    In addition, interest received on funds held with IBIE may be subject to Irish Withholding Tax (WHT).

  1. What is Irish Withholding tax and why will I have to pay it?

    Under Irish tax rules, IBIE is generally required to deduct withholding tax on interest paid on funds held in your IBIE account.

    The deduction is at a rate of 20%, unless you live in a country that has a Double Taxation Treaty with Ireland, which may provide for a lower deduction rate.

    For further information on the DTT rates, eligibility requirements and how to apply for these rates, please review our Irish Tax Withholding guide here.

  1. Do I have access to the same trading platform and/or software following the Merger?

    Yes. The Merger has had no impact upon the trading platform or software you use to trade or administer your account. The technology is the same.

  1. Does the Merger affect the products I can hold or trade and/or the services available to me?

    As an IBIE Client, you can access and trade the same products/services that are that were available at IBCE, as well as some additional products/services. Specifically:

    • IBIE clients can trade OTC Spot Metals (Gold and Silver) and OTC Futures on LME Metals.

    • IBIE clients can hold 24 currencies, compared to the 10 currencies that were offered by IBCE. As you can hold all trading currencies in your IBIE account, there is no auto-FX back to your base currency in IBIE on sell orders in those currencies.

      • Please see the IBIE Customer Agreement for further details on the application of auto-FX to accounts that are not margin enabled.

    • IBIE pays interest on your cash balances so the CYEP program will no longer applies.

  1. Was the cost basis of positions carried over on the Merger date?

    Yes. The Merger did not impact the cost basis of your positions.

  2. Does my account with IBIE retain the same permissions as my previous IBCE account?

    Following the transfer, your IBIE account permissions, including your margin capability, market data, additional users and alerts will generally match those of your IBCE account, unless changes are required for legal/regulatory reasons.

  3. Have my login credentials changed?

    No. Your username, password, and any 2-factor authentication process in place for your existing account have remained active following transfer. When your new account at IBIE is assigned, we will notify you of your new account number.

  4. For Hungarian residents, how has this affected my TBSZ account?

    TBSZ accounts are not affected by this change. Following the merger, TBSZ accounts are now serviced through IBIE.

  5. How am I protected against loss? Are there any material differences between my former IBCE relationship and my new relationship with IBIE?

    As an investment firm, IBIE is required to keep client funds segregated from their own funds so that if it becomes insolvent, client funds will not form part of their property for insolvency purposes and will be returned to their clients.

    Information on IBIE’s client asset requirements can be found in the Client Assets Key Information Document (“CAKID”).

    In certain cases, if an investment firm has failed to properly segregate client funds, it may not be possible to return these funds to the client should the firm becomes insolvent. Both Ireland and Hungary have compensation schemes in place to provide certain protections to retail clients if this happens. A key difference between those schemes is that the maximum amount of protection under the Hungarian scheme is €100,000, while the maximum amount under the Irish scheme is €20,000.

    You can find full details of the Irish scheme on https://www.investorcompensation.ie.