Frequently Asked Questions

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Have a question? Here are some of our most fequently asked questions to help you make the most of your Lightspeed trading account.


Most Popular FAQs

Everything you need to know about how to manage your Lightspeed trading account.

There is no fee to open an account with Lightspeed. Maintenance fees include the following:


·      Lightspeed Trader software fee is your total monthly commission charges subtracted from $130. For example, if you incur $100 in commissions for a given month, your total software fee for that month will be $30 ($130 - $100 commissions = $30).


Market data is $19.50 for stocks and an additional $10 for options. View our pricing structure for additional data.


·      If your account balance is below $15,000 and you do not incur at least $25 in monthly commissions then you will be charged a $25 monthly minimum inactivity fee.


·      All maintenance fees will be charged during the first business week of the month and will be based on commissions generated the previous month.

ACH transfers initiated through your bank will be rejected. Lightspeed requires ACH relationships as well as ACH transfers to be initiated through the customer portal.

If you do not know your login information, please contact a representative for assistance.


  • After logging in, go to “My Account” and click on the “Fund Transfers” link. ACH links and transactions initiated through other financial institutions will not be accepted.


  • ACH transfers initiated through your bank will be rejected.


  • Once the ACH link is verified, ACH transfers take only 2 business days to be completed.


  • Lightspeed does not charge for ACH transfers.


  • ACH deposits are limited to $30,000 per 60 calendar days.


  • ACH links are limited to 1 per client.


Bank Name: U.S. Bank

Bank Address:

80 S 8th Street, Minneapolis, MN 55402 or,

Portland, OR

ABA/Routing #: 123000848

Beneficiary: Wedbush Securities, Inc.

Beneficiary Address:

1000 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90017

Beneficiary Account: 153910900825

For Further Credit to (FFC):

Your name and account number*


For cash account types, add a "1" to the end of your account number.

For margin account types, add a "2" to the end of your account number.

Bank Name: The Bank of New York Mellon

Bank Address:

225 Liberty Street, New York, NY 10286

Secondary Bank Address:

240 Greenwich St, New York, NY 10007

SWIFT Code: IRVTUS3N

Beneficiary Address:

1000 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90017

Beneficiary Account: 8540900001


For cash account types, add a "1" to the end of your account number.

For margin account types, add a "2" to the end of your account number.


Open An Account

Find all the answers you need about opening a LIghtspeed trading account.

There is no fee to open an account with Lightspeed. Maintenance fees include the following:


·      Lightspeed Trader software fee is your total monthly commission charges subtracted from $130. For example, if you incur $100 in commissions for a given month, your total software fee for that month will be $30 ($130 - $100 commissions = $30).



·      Market data is $19.50 for stocks and an additional $10 for options. Pricing for additional data can be found here.



·      If your account balance is below $15,000 and you do not incur at least $25 in monthly commissions then you will be charged a $25 monthly minimum inactivity fee.



·      All maintenance fees will be charged during the first business week of the month and will be based on commissions generated the previous month.

Typically, most applications are processed in 1-2 business days. We will email you if additional documentation is required. If you would like to check the status of your application, please call or email us. 


Account Information

Get answers for how to manage your account, update your profile, change your password and more.

To change your address, you must complete the address change form and fax to 646-393-4844 or scan and email to [email protected].

Please email the request to [email protected]. Updated forms would be required – W8-BEN, Letter A, new government identification, and address verification

Please send an email to [email protected].

To update your email address, please send an email to [email protected] from the registered email address on file

You can use this link, or contact our service desk at 646-393-4800 ext. 1

We would require a beneficial ownership form to be completed, and your updated corporate documents to be supplied to [email protected].

Individual positions that you initiate for Equities, Options, and Futures will all be displayed in your Positions Window on Lightspeed Trader intraday and will be combined there for your net P&L calculations.

Please contact our cashiering department at 646-393-4800 ext. 6 or email [email protected].

A demo account gives you full access to the trading platform to test its features and functionality in a simulation environment.

A demo account is purely a simulation environment. The demo is designed to test the system, configure settings, and learn the platform rather than true P/L and speed testing.

 

A demo account will fill any order in full based on the last traded price and does not simulate interaction with the live markets. A live account fills orders based on price/time priority along with the number of shares available, which is not calculated in the demo. The demo can simulate the speed of order entry and the typical fill speed of market orders, but the number of shares and prices given is an estimate of how a live account would perform.

Please submit a request for a ten-day demo account through this form. Please keep in mind you will need two separate demo accounts for Lightspeed Trader and Lightspeed web & mobile

Yes, are you able to use a demo account with your live account. It does require a separate login, but two instances of the program can run simultaneously

Please email [email protected] to adjust your buying power for your demo account.


Activity Statements


Trading reports are available in the Client Portal accessible from the Lightspeed website. Simply click on the Login button in the upper right corner. Once you are logged in, from the left-hand navigation bar, click on My Account, then go to Trading Reports > Account View.

Simply log in, select Reports, Daily P&Ls, click on your 1LD account number which will take you to a Daily Summary page. Once here click on the “MTD” Tab in the menu bar. You can then select the date period on the left-hand side. On the right-hand side, you will see icons of possible formats in which to upload.


Activity Types


Please submit a request for a demo trial through our website form.

Lightspeed offers several account types including:

·      Individual/Joint, Cash/Margin/Portfolio Margin

·      Corporate/LLC/Partnerships

·      Hedge Funds

·      Trusts

·      Retirement accounts – Traditional IRA, Roth IRA, SEP, Rollover IRA, Limited Margin IRA

Learn more.

Please use the online application and designate the account type, or you can download the appropriate application.

Please use the online application and designate the account type, or you can download the appropriate application.

Lightspeed offers several IRA accounts including; Traditional IRA, Roth IRA, Rollover IRA, SEP, and Limited Margin IRA.

Please use the online application and designate the account type, or you can download the appropriate application.


Commissions, Fees & Interest


There is no fee to open an account with Lightspeed. Maintenance fees include the following:


·      Lightspeed Trader software fee is your total monthly commission charges subtracted from $130. For example, if you incur $100 in commissions for a given month, your total software fee for that month will be $30 ($130 - $100 commissions = $30).


·      Market data is $13 for stocks and an additional $10 for options. Pricing for additional data can be found here.


·      If your account balance is below $15,000 and you do not incur at least $25 in monthly commissions then you will be charged a $25 monthly minimum inactivity fee.


·      All maintenance fees will be charged during the first business week of the month and will be based on commissions generated the previous month.

No, an order is not applied with a commission if it is canceled or expired without receiving an execution. Any order which is fully or partially filled will be applied with a commission.

Any order which is fully or partially filled will be applied with a commission. The Per Trade commission structure would apply the full ticket charge. The Per Share structure would only charge on the number of shares executed.

Lightspeed would not apply a fee for receiving an incoming ACAT transfer. Outgoing ACAT’s will apply a $95 charge.

·      Lightspeed Trader software fee is your total monthly commission charges subtracted from $130. For example, if you incur $100 in commissions for a given month, your total software fee for that month will be $30 ($130 - $100 commissions = $30).


·      Market data is $13 for stocks and an additional $10 for options. Pricing for additional data can be found here.


·      If your account balance is below $15,000 and you do not incur at least $25 in monthly commissions then you will be charged a $25 monthly minimum inactivity fee.


·      All maintenance fees will be charged during the first business week of the month and will be based on commissions generated the previous month.

Yes. Lightspeed Trader customers can send an email to [email protected] with their account number and the date to cancel the platform and the exchange data feed fees. Please note that this option is not available on our third-party trading platforms.

To cancel your Eze EMS (formerly RealTick) access, please send an e-mail request to [email protected]. Requests to cancel an Eze EMS (formerly RealTick) account require a 30-day notice to cancel. We make every attempt to honor your subscription change request as soon as possible but cannot guarantee it will be completed before you are charged for the upcoming month.

 

The earliest a platform cancellation can be submitted is 5 business days before the end of the month (since cancellations are not pro-rated for the current month). Cancellation will take effect after a full calendar month, post-cancellation.

To reactivate a trading platform, send an e-mail to [email protected] and request to have your platform access turned on. Please note that fees are not prorated. If you reactivate in the middle or end of the month, you will be charged for the full month.

Please send an email to [email protected] with the account number and request to reopen the account. Our team will respond with a confirmation or a request for updated documents.

Sterling Trader Pro will carry a monthly fee of $240 plus market data fees.


Market data feeds are enabled a la carte - https://www.sterlingtradingtech.com/market-data/


There is an additional $30 fee to enable the options trading module.

LVX will apply a $600 monthly software fee.

No, there are no monthly software or market data charges for the Web/Mobile platform. You would only be charged commissions for your transactions.

EZE Platform costs: 

  • $350 per month for RealTick Pro


  • $150 per month for RealTick Express


Market data ala carte: https://emsportal.ezesoft.com/rtdata.aspx  

US wires - $20


International wires - $50


Lightspeed does not charge to receive an incoming wire deposit


Funding & Withdrawals


You would be able to transfer funds through a wire transfer from your bank account or existing brokerage accounts. You are also able to initiate a full or partial account transfer (ACAT) transfer.


Learn more about funding instructions.


Please contact our cashiering team for additional assistance – [email protected] or 646-393-4800, ext. 6.

Please login to the Lightspeed Client Portal and visit the Funding section to provide your instructions for withdrawal.


Withdrawal options include wire transfer, ACH or eCheck, and ACAT account transfer processed by your receiving firm.

Wire transfers will be available the next day after we receive the deposit. ACH transfers will take 2-3 business days to clear.

US $ WIRE INSTRUCTIONS

 

Harris Trust and Savings Bank of Chicago

111 West Monroe Street, Chicago, IL 60603

ABA #071-000-288

Credit: Wedbush Securities Inc

Customer Segregated Account: 2730893

For Further Credit: Your Name and Your Wedbush Securities Inc.  Account Number

 

Should you have any questions please contact our dedicated Relationship Management team at 1-888-LSPD-123 (1-888-577-3123) or email [email protected].

 

Accounts can be funded using either a wire transfer from your bank or by sending us a check drawn from a bank account that lists your name (i.e., the same legal name as what appears on your Lightspeed account.

The ACH setup is established through the Lightspeed website. Please login to the customer center and go to the funding tab to set up a new ACH relationship. Once the relationship is established, you can request the transfer.

The funds will be available for trading the next day after the funds have cleared.

No, we would not accept deposits via credit/debit card or any 3rd party payment processing companies (ie. Paypal/TransferWise).

You may fund your account by wire, ACH, or ACAT.

No, we do not accept direct deposit funding.

Yes, if the bank account matches the name of the Lightspeed account and is also in the same country as your residence. ACH relationships are only permitted with one bank account.

Wire transfer is the fastest way to fund your account. Typically, it takes one business day.

An electronic clearinghouse relationship that allows your bank account to be linked to the Lightspeed trading account.

Bank Name: U.S. Bank

Bank Address:

80 S 8th Street, Minneapolis, MN 55402 or,

Portland, OR

ABA/Routing #: 123000848

Beneficiary: Wedbush Securities, Inc.

Beneficiary Address:

1000 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90017

Beneficiary Account: 153910900825

For Further Credit to (FFC):

Your name and account number*


For cash account types, add a "1" to the end of your account number.

For margin account types, add a "2" to the end of your account number.


The cutoff time for same-day processing of a withdrawal request is 2:30 pm ET. If you submitted your request after this time, it will be processed the next business day. You can view the status of your request by logging into the customer portal. You may also contact our cashiering team for additional assistance, [email protected] or 646-393-4800, ext. 6.


Provided the funds are available to be withdrawn, below is a general guideline for how long it takes to process and complete a withdrawal request.

 

·      Check: Same-day processing if submitted before the cut-off time. US mail can take up to 10 business days to deliver a check.

 

·      Wire: Same-day processing if submitted before the cut-off time. A wire should be received in the recipient bank account that same afternoon.

 

·      ACH: Same-day processing if submitted before the cut-off time. An ACH transfer can take 24 - 48 business hours for the funds to hit the recipient bank account.

To submit a withdrawal request, log in to the secure client area. Once logged in, look in the left-hand navigator bar for ‘Transfer Funds’. Click on this link to submit an online withdrawal request.


Lightspeed Trader


The Lightspeed Trader trading platform provides daily buying power figures. To determine how much cash, you have in your trading account log into the secure Lightspeed Secure client area and refer to either the Equity or the Account Summary Report.

Sometimes a computer can go offline and stop connecting to a quote server. Lightspeed suggests performing the following steps if you are not getting quotes:

 

  1. Log off your trading platform, then log back on. This will re-establish your connection to our quote servers. If this does not work, then perform the next step:


  1. Shut down the computer, turn off the modem and/or router. Keep them off for 60 seconds. Then turn on your modem/router and then start up your computer.

 

If neither of the above work and you is still not getting quotes, please call our tech support team at 1-888-577-3123, and press option number 4 so they can help you troubleshoot further.

Green E = Easy to borrow, you can place a short order at anytime


Grey L = Locate required. You would need a locate to place short orders which can be obtained by emailing [email protected] to request a locate. Please provide the account number, symbol, and number of shares. Additionally, we offer an automated Short locate tool through the software to allow a request for a pre-borrow fee. Please contact [email protected] to request to have this feature enabled. You may also view an instructional video here.


Red T = Threshold symbol, No locates available.


Red CB = Stock is currently under a circuit Breaker and may not be shorted on Bid

Right-click in your Market Maker Box and select “Settings”. Select the “Design” sub-tab and check “Show Margin Requirements.” When this option is checked, the Margin Requirement will appear in the top right corner of Level 2 with an Icon, displaying 25% (marginable) or 100% (non-marginable).

Lightspeed’s trading hours of operation are 4 AM to 8 PM EST on weekdays only.


You can access the program outside of trading hours to changes to your layout or configurations. Market data will not be available outside of market hours. There are times when the software will be unavailable during weekends due to server updates and maintenance.

Lightspeed Trader protects customers from sending odd lot orders to certain venues because of prohibitive pricing enforced by these ECN’s. We recommend placing your odd-lot order on Nasdaq (ISLD).

Yes, to change the Display in your Order Window, right-click and choose the “Change Display.” Here you can add or filter out Active Orders, Cancelled Orders, or Executed Orders.

Right-click on the Chart and choose “Settings”. Under the ‘Chart Parameters’ tab, you can change the time frame under Period, select the Interval, and the number of days or weeks back you’d like to view.

Yes, you can get an audible alert when an execution occurs by checking the box in the Trading Tab, Warnings sub-tab – look in the lower right for ‘Execution Sound’.

Lightspeed chart data displays 7 days of intraday chart history, regardless of the minute bar time frame you choose.

The Lightspeed Trader clock represents the time on the PC Clock. To edit it, log out of Lightspeed Trader, change the PC clock and log back in. We recommend setting your clock to the Eastern Standard Time and Time Zone while trading, for best results.

The recommended DPI setting on the local PC is normal (96) or small (100) for Lightspeed to be viewed properly. To set your windows DPI setting, select the Advanced Settings on the Windows Display Properties, Settings sub-tab.

By default, the Lightspeed keyboard key for this function is “\”.

Your layout can be automatically saved every time you log out. If you made changes to your layout that you are not happy with and you do not know how to undo them, there is an option when you log out to NOT save configuration changes or changes to your keyboard mappings.

 

As a backup, you can save the layout file to your computer through the Layout menu. Please click here to view an instructional video.

Yes, ask your Relationship Manager for permission to leave your day orders open after logout.

Users can click on the “L” icon in the top left corner of any window and select Lock from the menu. This will ensure this window is displayed on all your pages.

There is a list of available indices available for download on the website. All indices are preceded by a “.”

The Lightspeed Trader Design Tab offers a drop-down to Mark P&L by Last Trade or Inside Market.

To view Level 2 quotes, right-click on Level 2 and select settings. Under ‘Integrate Direct Quotes’, you can check ECNs you would like to integrate and adjacent, select several price levels to integrate or uncheck the ECN if you would not like them displayed at all.

The Lightspeed predefined custom orders labeled for Buy and Sell will allow for aggressive/actionable orders to be generated and submitted directly for execution. The buy order will be priced at the current offer, and the sell order will be priced at the current inside bid.

 

The Bid/Offer keys would generate the pop-up box or populate the order entry form which will then require the order to be submitted with additional confirmation. The Bid order will be priced at the inside Bid, and the Offer order will be priced at the inside Offer.

 

Essentially, the buy/sell will look to be the aggressive order while the bid/offer orders will be priced as a passive order.

Tier and Full mean the same thing: they will both send your Tier Size.

Yes, first select ‘Utilities’, then ‘Configuration settings’ in the top left corner of Lightspeed Trader, and go to the “Trading” tab. Use the “Cancels” Sub tab to check “Cancel All Orders on Market Close.”

Yes, the Trading tab is equipped with a Warnings Tab for setting your own Risk criteria and a Confirms Tab for different scenarios.

If the through amount is greater than zero, your Smart Order will try and execute with ECN’s FIRST within this amount. This will cause your order to attempt to execute with an ECN at a worse price than a market maker on the inside. We recommend setting your Smart Order Through Amount at Zero and your Allowance amount at your Marketable Limit.

The difference between the Through and Marketable limit is Through will simultaneously spray all participants up to your Through amount immediately. Marketable Limit is the amount you are willing to let the Inside Market trail up (when buying) or down (when selling) and continues to execute your order. The Through amount cannot be higher than your Marketable Limit.

Smart Orders are Lightspeed Trader’s proprietary Orders that will execute with the best-priced participant, one order at a time.

 

Supersmart Orders are a more aggressive proprietary Smart Router that sends many orders simultaneously on your behalf.

 

INCA Smart is the Nasdaq Smart Router, Nasdaq controls and routes your orders themselves.

Users can create custom orders and type RASH in as the market of choice. This will send orders to the Nasdaq Smart Router as RASH orders do. You can also use the INCA Smart Keys to access the Nasdaq Smart Router.

Yes, use the Increments tab to build an ECN Scroll List and select “ECN Scroll for your up/down arrows” or for “Repeating Command.”

Hidden orders are only accepted in certain venues. To hide an individual order, select the amount of shares you wish to be hidden under the ‘visible’ section of the order entry form. The number of shares will be what you route to have executed, while visible will be the amount that is visible.

The ESC key is programmed to Cancel All Orders. Users can also map Cancel Keys anywhere on the keyboard in the Keyboard Tab.

 

You can modify this setting in the “Trading” tab, under the “Cancels” sub-tab. Here you can set the ESC key to cancel all but DAY orders or to do nothing at all when pressed.

Yes. In the “Trading” tab, under the “Cancels” sub tab.  Here you can set the ESC key to cancel all but DAY orders or to do nothing at all when pressed.

To remove an ECN or Market Maker from the Level 2 display, go to Settings and uncheck the venue from the list under Integrate Direct Quotes. Off to the right of the same screen, you may also type any Market Maker or Exchange in the Exclude MM’s section to remove them from your Level 2.

The Liquidity Replenishment Point (LRP) is a volatility control for NYSE securities built into the Display Book to curb wide price movements resulting from automatic executions and sweeps over a short period of time. When triggered, LRPs automatically convert the market temporarily to a “slow” or “Auction Market” only mode, allowing specialists, floor brokers, and customers to supplement liquidity in response to the stock’s volatility. Automatic executions resume after a manual trade takes place or automatically after a specified time.

Right-click on the Level 2 screen and choose ‘settings’. Then click on the MM Boxes tab, Price Levels sub-tab. Here you are equipped with a dropdown to set a specific ECN always on top.

There is a setting in the keyboard Tab and when this is checked, all Closeout and Closeout Full orders will NOT send an order if you do not have a corresponding position in that stock. If this is not checked, these orders will always send your “Tier Size.”

Yes, there is a setting in the Tier Sizes Tab, “Reset to Default After Retype.” This will reset all Tier Sizes to the default setting every time you type up new stock.

Yes, this can be done. Just call Lightspeed client service, provide your Trader ID, the layout name you wish to transfer, and the recipient Trader ID.

The default PnL for LS Trader “Marked PnL” is mark to the market system which goes off the previous close. When holding a position overnight you will get a PnL each day based on the previous day’s closing price.

The ESC key is programmed to Cancel All Orders. Users can also map Cancel Keys anywhere on the keyboard in the Keyboard Tab.

 

You can modify this setting in the “Trading” tab, under the “Cancels” sub-tab. Here you can set the ESC key to cancel all but DAY orders or to do nothing at all when pressed.


Tax Statements


1099s will be by late February.

Yes. Option transactions will be made available on your 1099.

Account-holders that are United States citizens or legal residents and had any reportable tax activity for the year and, corporations that noted “S” S Corporation or “P” Partnership on form W9 will receive 1099.

 

C-Corporations do not receive 1099s but are responsible for reporting any earnings that they receive based on financial statements that the company reports.

1099B - Proceeds from Broker and Barter Exchange Transactions


  • Sales or redemptions of securities.


  • All sales of full shares, regardless of amount, will be reported on a Form 1099-B. Fractional shares can be subject to a de minimis reporting if under $20.00.


  • Any foreign tax that was not refunded and any federal income tax under the backup withholding rules regardless of the amount.

 

1099-DIV - Dividends and Distributions


  • Distributions such as dividends, capital gain distributions, or nontaxable distributions paid on stock and liquidation distributions.


  • Only amounts of $10.00 or more for distributions paid on stock or $600 or more for liquidations are required to be reported on the forms.


  • Any foreign tax that was not refunded and any federal income tax under the backup withholding rules regardless of the amount.

 

1099-INT – Interest Income


  • All interest income in an amount greater than $10.00 that is not already reported on other forms will be reported here.


  • Any foreign tax that was not refunded and any federal income tax under the backup withholding rules regardless of the amount.

 

1099-MISC


  • At least $10.00 in royalties or broker payments in lieu of dividends or tax-exempt interest.


  • Any foreign tax that was not refunded and any federal income tax under the backup withholding rules regardless of the amount.

If you use TurboTax (Premier or Self-Employed edition) to prepare your tax returns, you can now retrieve your 1099 forms through TurboTax and import them into your tax return. The following 1099 forms can be imported: 1099-B, 1099-DIV, 1099-INT, 1099-MISC, 1099-OID, and 1099-R. When TurboTax prompts you to choose your bank or brokerage, type in and search by “Wedbush Securities Inc”. Note: When selecting your brokerage, you may see other options with the Wedbush name. Please select “Wedbush Securities Inc” and not “Wedbush”. TurboTax will require you to have an Account Number and Document ID, both of which can be found on your 1099 statement(s). If you receive updated tax statement(s), additional imports or manual adjustments may be needed.

Backup withholding is a tax that is levied on investment income, at an established tax rate, as the investor withdraws it. Backup withholding requirements are governed by the IRS and are required to be enforced by all withholding agents on all nonexempt individuals and entities. The current backup withholding rate is 24%.

 

Backup withholding is required to be reported on the appropriate form 1099 regardless of the amount withheld. The $10.00 de minimis rule does not apply when backup withholding has occurred. Additional information can be found at, http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p1335.pdf.

If you receive a Form 1099 that has an incorrect TIN, please contact the Relationship Management department. We may need to obtain a new W-9 form to verify your TIN and then have the clearing firm generate a corrected form 1099.

Starting in 2011 the IRS mandated the reporting of cost basis for covered securities only on Form 1099-B. A covered security is an equity stock that was acquired on or after January 1, 2011.

If the cost basis information that is reported on your Form 1099-B is incorrect, you can report a correction to the IRS using Form 8949. Instructions for completing this form can be found on the IRS website at www.irs.gov/instructions.

For transactions that fall under the category of wash sales, the adjusted costs basis is increased by the amount of the disallowed loss.

Per IRS rule under section 475(f), a valid mark-to-market election is one that has been made by the due date of the tax return for the year, prior to the year for which the election becomes effective. Please contact Lightspeed after this election has been made with the IRS. Email [email protected] for instructions on how to set this up for your account.

You can find additional information regarding tax reporting on the IRS website at www.irs.gov.


Technical Assistance


Make sure you are clicking on the VPN Login exe Icon and not the Lightspeed Trader shortcut Icon. When you log into the VPN, Lightspeed Trader will automatically start on its own.

We ask that customers who would like to connect via VPN only disable the “worm blocking” feature on Norton under the email options and uncheck “Stealth Blocked Ports” under the firewall options on Norton. Disabling these features should not pose a security risk for you.

We recommend Windows XP or above, a minimum of 1 GHz Pentium 3 processor speed, at least 3GB RAM, and at least 300 MB free disk space.

 

Options trading uses a great deal of bandwidth. Users who just meet the minimum internet connectivity specifications may have a difficult time smoothly running the Lightspeed Trader if options trading is employed.

Right-click in your Market Maker Box and select “Settings”. Select the “Design” sub-tab and check “Show Margin Requirements.” When this option is checked, the Margin Requirement will appear in the top right corner of Level 2 with an Icon, displaying 25% (marginable) or 100% (non-marginable).

You must be sure you are logging in using the proper connection method, either SSL or VPN. Most users should log in via the SSL connection. Underneath the password entry area, there is a drop-down menu. Change to SSL (most users) and try to log in again.

If you are using a laptop to trade, you should consider laptop mode. When on a laptop, you should only use one trading screen. When choosing laptop mode, you will be asked if you would like to have that machine considered a laptop. If so, Lightspeed will always open in Laptop mode on that machine. To change to laptop mode, click on FILE then Change to Laptop mode.

Lightspeed Trader demands a suitable download speed to run properly. Whether it’s DSL or Cable modem is irrelevant, just be sure your download speed is a minimum of 800 kbps. If you are unsure of your internet download speed, consult your ISP for a test.

Yes, we do offer a MAC version of the software which can be run on the operating system version of MAC OSX 10 or higher.

 

Windows:         https://download.lightspeed.com/LatestLightspeedVersion.msi


Mac:              https://download.lightspeed.com/LightspeedLatestMacVersion.zip

There are several causes of internet speed problems including:


  1. Service issues: If your internet service provider (ISP) is experiencing a technical issue, that will affect your ability to access the internet and/or access at proper speeds for online trading.
  2. Spyware on computers: Even if your ISP is operating normally, spyware programs can consume your modem bandwidth and reduce your speed.
  3. Improperly configured router: The router is the gateway between your computer and the internet connection. If not configured properly, your internet speed can be compromised.
  4. Old computer: If your system does not have the minimum required specifications, your trading platform will not be able to keep pace with the internet connection, resulting in lowered internet speeds.

Slow quotes are generally attributed to slow or faulty Internet connections. First, refresh your connection to our servers. This can be accomplished by logging off and back on to your trading platform. This usually resolves many quote issues.

 

If this does not resolve your issues, please shut down your computer and your modem/router. Keep them off for at least 60 seconds. Then turn on the modem, reboot your computer and start the trading platform again.

 

If after logging off and back on to your platform and after running Internet connectivity tests (see below) your quotes are still slow, please call technical support at 1-888-577-3123, then press option 4 for further assistance.

Sometimes Internet connections can experience a momentary drop-in service (what is also known as an Internet hiccup). This will prevent your system from receiving data, as your connection to our servers was lost. Logging off and back on to your platform will refresh and/or re-establish your connection to our servers.

Internet connectivity tests are crucial in determining your Internet connection speed and how well you can reach our servers here at Lightspeed. There are two types of Internet connection tests: Ping and Trace Route.

 

A ping test sends a packet of data to a specific address (generally a test server) and waits for a reply. Upon return, the test will inform the length of time the data packet used to travel to the test server.

 

A traceroute test is like a ping test, but in addition to the Internet speed, it also traces the route (servers) used to travel from your system to the test server. Generally, there will be about 12-16 servers (or “hops”) taken to reach your test server destination. Each hop will offer a time in milliseconds and the name of the server.

 

Lightspeed Trader Platform

To perform a ping test, traceroute test, and speed test, log in to the secure site at staging.lightspeed.com. From the left-hand navigation bar, click on ‘Customer Support’ then ‘Internet SpeedTest’.

 

Eze EMS (formerly RealTick) Platform

To perform a ping test, bring up a DOS shell/prompt. (Click on Start/from the search area type in the word Command and press enter). From the DOS prompt type in ping beacon.taltrade.com. Your system will send the packet of data. You should expect 4 replies detailing the number of milliseconds the packet traveled. The lower the number (in milliseconds), the better your connection.

 

We recommend ping test times around 100ms to run Eze EMS (formerly RealTick) and the Lightspeed Trader properly. If any data is lost (usually noted as an asterisk) your connection is not only slow but perhaps down altogether. You must then inform your Internet service provider (ISP).

 

If any of these times are above 100ms (or display an asterisk) your connection is an issue and should be reported to your ISP. When contacting your ISP, be sure to inform the server’s name in the line that produces the faulty or slow connection.

Passwords used to log into our trading platforms are case-sensitive. Be sure that the Caps Lock key is not active when entering your password. Also, check the stability of your Internet connection by running ping or trace route tests. If confirming that your password or Internet connection is an issue, contact customer support for further assistance.

Since our trading platforms sync with your system time, it is imperative that your system time is accurate. If the system time is not accurate, your charts and other time-sensitive data will not update accurately.

To connect to Lightspeed servers, ports 1723GRE, inbound and outbound must be open. We also recommend shutting down the windows firewall and disabling any virus protection when logging on. Alternatively, you can allow this file as safe or as an exception in the virus protection software: ls.exe.

 

If you are trying to connect to the Eze EMS (formerly RealTick) platform servers, you must have certain connection ports open: 1723-1728, 1838, and 448. Open these ports through your computer (or contact your network administrator to open the ports).

 

Please note: If the proper ports are not open allowing for two-way traffic, you will not be able to log in to a trading platform. If are accessing your trading platform on a system for which you are not the system administrator, or you are unable to run your trading platform from your location, please contact your system administrator for assistance in changing these configurations.

A firewall or router may compromise your connection to the platform servers. It is important that the firewall and router are configured to allow a seamless connection to our servers. Oftentimes, you may be able to request that the firewall or router allow certain files to pass through your security without scrutiny.

 

These files are as follows:

Lightspeed Trader: ls.exe

Eze EMS (formerly RealTick): msgapp32.exe, rt332.exe, ypermcache.exe

 

Where to perform these configurations depends on your firewall/router. Consult your user’s manual for more details.

Lightspeed does not recommend the use of WIFI or wireless routers for active day trading as they may not always provide the strongest, most consistent internet connection. A wired connection is highly recommended when trading with Lightspeed.

You may, provided you are logging in with distinct usernames. However, ensure that your computer has an elevated amount of RAM and processing speed, and your internet connection is fast enough to handle the large amount of data that will be drawn into your system.

Lightspeed’s servers store the most recent layout (the one last saved). If you happen to lose your layout for any reason, Lightspeed should be able to access your most recent layout and restore it back onto your platform.

 

Eze EMS (formerly RealTick) users should note that all pages are saved on your personal computer and retrieval is not possible through Lightspeed.


Trading & Investing


An account is not uploaded with buying power for two reasons:


  1.  The account is coded as a pattern day trader and the account equity is below $25,000 (pattern day traders must have a minimum balance of $25,000)


  1. The account currently has a margin call.

 

A pattern day trade account is an account that has exhibited day trading tendencies (traded more than 3-day trades in a rolling, 5 business day period). If your account is a pattern day trading account and is below $25,000, you must deposit funds into your account to be able to trade again.

 

The only other alternative would be to change to a non-pattern day trade account.

 

To do this you must send an email to [email protected] with your account number and request to change to a non-pattern day trader. This can only be done once every 90 trading days. Note that if an account exhibits pattern day trade activity after being moved to a non-pattern day trader, then the account will be coded as a non-pattern day trade account again and will be required to meet the $25,000 equity minimum

 

To view your account equity and any margin calls, go to the secure Lightspeed site (go to secure.lightspeed.com and click on login from the upper right corner. Once you are logged in, from the left-hand navigation bar, click on My Account, then go to Trading Reports, Account View. this will take you to our firm site which offers a battery of trading reports so you can keep track of your account.

 

To learn more about the different margin calls that can be assessed to an account, click here.

You can close positions through your trading software or you can call our trade desk to enter orders on your behalf. Once the positions are closed, please log in to the customer portal and choose “funding" and then “Transfer Funds". Select your withdrawal method and select “Account Balance.” Click on “Submit” to complete your request. The account closure process typically takes 2-3 business days to complete. Once completed, your funds will be sent as instructed.

Reg T margin provides for 4x intraday buying power and 2x for overnight holding. Portfolio Margin accounts provide for higher leverage for intraday and overnight. 6.6x for intraday trading and 5x for overnight holdings. Additional risk, liquidity, or concentration requirements may be applied as well.

An account must maintain $2,000 to maintain trading privileges. You would need to maintain a balance above $25,000 to be a pattern day trading margin account.

Please send an email request to [email protected]. A new account application and margin agreement may be required.

Please email [email protected] with a request to change the account type. Additionally, if the balance falls below the required $150,000 the account will be converted to Reg. T after 1 day.

Please submit a new email request to [email protected]. Additional paperwork and approval will be required.

Pattern day trading is a FINRA designation for a stock trader who executes four or more day trades in five business days in a margin account.

An account would be approved for a day trading margin account upon your initial application or an additional request to the new accounts department. If an account balance is above $25,000, it would be eligible to be classified as a PDT account. Once the account activity exceeds the defined number of trades, it would be classified as a Pattern Day Trading account going forward.

 

If your margin account is under $25,000 then you are limited to 3 intraday trades in a 5-trading day rolling period.

The 5-day rolling period is NOT a week-by-week calculation. For example, if you log in to trade on Wed, the number of day trades will be calculated based on the activity of the previous, Tues, Monday, Friday, and Thursday with the present day as the 5th day. 


Any buy and sell in the same security on the same day can be considered a day trade.

For example, If you bought 100 shares, then bought another 100 shares one hour later and then one hour after that sold 200 shares, that could be considered two day trade.


If you bought 200 shares and then sold 100 shares one hour later and an hour after that sold another 100 shares, that could also be considered two day trades.

FINRA requires a minimum of $25,000 for Pattern Day Trader margin accounts. To initiate new positions, you may: 

1.    Increase funds on deposit to $25,000 or,


2.    Request Non-Pattern Day Trader status. Keep in mind that you may only downgrade to Non-Pattern Day Trader once per lifetime of the account. Please email [email protected] with a request to convert to a Non-PDT status.

 

Non-PDT accounts are limited to a total of three-day trades during any five-day period.

During pre and post-market you must use limit orders. Market orders will reject. Also, the LSPT route is not available during pre and post-market.

To access the short requestor, you can email [email protected]Please click here to view an instructional video.

To check the availability of stock on Lightspeed Trader, right-click in your Market Maker Box and select “Settings”. Select the “Design” sub-tab and check “Show Borrowable Indicator.” Please click here to view an instructional video.


Sterling Trader will display the "ETB" indicator on the Level 2 window.   

 

A user may also log in to the Lightspeed website to look up any symbol through the customer center>Shorts tab>Easy To Borrow Search

To check the availability of stock on Lightspeed Trader, right-click in your Market Maker Box and select “Settings”. Select the “Design” sub-tab and check “Show Borrowable Indicator.” Please click here to view an instructional video.


In the top left corner of Level 2, you will now see an indication of the stock’s borrow ability at the start of the day.


  • E = easy to borrow (colored green)


  • H = hard to borrow (colored yellow)


  • T = threshold security (colored red)

 

Remember, if you are granted permission to short these stocks this indication will NOT update.

The formula for calculating margin on futures is:

 

Available funds x Margin Multiplier = Initial Maintenance Requirements

 

For example:

 

An account with Available Funds = $10,000

 

Let’s begin with the assumption that a futures trader has been approved to trade futures, and they intend to put on an opening position and fund their futures account with an initial deposit of $10,000.

 

In order to put the initial futures position on, the approved futures account must have enough buying power to cover the Initial Maintenance Requirement for that specific contract.

 

For example, if the initial maintenance requirement on the S&P E-Mini contract is $5,000, then an account with $10,000 of available funds will be able to purchase or sell short 4 contracts on standard 2 to 1 margin or 8 contracts upon approval as a “qualified account (entitling them for 4 to 1 margin.)

 

For our example, the $10,000 account with 2 to 1 margin will have $20,000 in buying power and can thus purchase or sell short 4 contracts. (10,000 X 2)/5000=4.

 

To continue holding the position, the Maintenance Requirement, which is lower than the Initial Maintenance Requirement, must be maintained. Let’s continue our example with the S&P E-Mini contracts which have a Maintenance Requirement of $4000. This means that the account must maintain $16,000 in buying power to hold the original 4 contracts. At a 2 to 1 margin, that translates to $8,000 in equity.

 

If the equity falls below $8,000, the account will trigger a margin call and a deposit of additional funds or liquidation of part, or all of the open futures positions will be required.

The IRS does not allow you to deduct losses from sales or trades of stock or securities in a wash sale. A wash sale occurs when you sell or trade stock or securities at a loss and within 30 days before or after the sale you:

  • Buy substantially identical stock or securities,


  • Acquire substantially identical stock or securities in a fully taxable trade,


  • Acquire a contract or option to buy substantially identical stock or securities, or,


  • Acquire substantially identical stock for your individual retirement account (IRA) or Roth IRA.



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© 2024 Lightspeed Financial Services Group, LLC. All rights reserved.

Equities, equities options, and commodity futures products and services are offered by Lightspeed Financial Services Group LLC (Member FINRA, NFA and SIPC). Lightspeed Financial Services Group LLC’s SIPC coverage is available only for securities, and for cash held in connection with the purchase or sale of securities, in equities and equities options accounts. You may check the background of Lightspeed Financial Services Group LLC on FINRA’s BrokerCheck.


Options trading entails significant risk and is not appropriate for all investors. Certain complex options strategies carry additional risk. Before trading options, please read Characteristics and Risks of Standardized Options


ETFs are subject to market fluctuation and the risks of their underlying investments. ETFs are subject to management fees and other expenses.