Table of Contents
- How do I open a Clarke Capital Account?
- So how do I find an FCM?
- What is a Managed Futures Account?
- Is futures trading risky?
- Who has access to the money in my account?
- How do I monitor trading activity in my account?
- What is a Notionally-Funded Account, and can I use Notional Funds?
- What kind of time horizon should I expect for an
investment of this type?
How do I open a Clarke Capital Account?
All Clarke accounts must be opened through an approved Futures Commission Merchant (FCM). FCM’s are governed by the NFA (National Futures Association) and registered with the CFTC (Commodity Futures Trading Commission) and must meet and maintain strict financial standards to remain in good standing with the regulatory agencies. Clarke Capital currently maintains clearing relationships with no less than 8 different FCM’s.
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So how do I find an FCM?
Usually through an IB (Introducing Broker). IB’s solicit funds from individuals to place in investment programs like those that Clarke offers. Although most IB’s are independent, they maintain relationships with FCM’s and sometimes even share office space with them. If you don’t know an IB, call us and we can recommend several to you. They will walk you through the process of setting up a Managed Futures account.Back to Top
What is a Managed Futures Account?
According to the NFA: An arrangement by which the owner of the account gives written power of attorney to someone else, usually the broker or a Commodity Trading Advisor, to buy and sell without prior approval of the account owner. Also referred to as a Discretionary Account.Back to Top
Yes. The NFA requires anyone that opens a
futures account to sign a form stating that they have received, read and
understand all the associated risks that accompany futures trading. These risks
are clearly spelled out in our Disclosure Document, available from the Documents
page on this
website.
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Who has access to the money in my account?
Only you and your FCM can authorize cash movement in and out of your account. Clarke Capital does not have access to funds in any managed account. Our quarterly fees are withdrawn by the FCM and paid to us only after the client has had a reasonable amount of time to verify the accuracy of his billed fee amounts.
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How
do I monitor trading activity in my account?
All account holders receive daily statements of
activity from their FCM. In addition, some IB’s maintain websites where the
client can see real-time account activity throughout the trading day.
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What is a Notionally-Funded Account, and can I
use Notional Funds?
A Notionally Funded account is one in which the
nominal account size actually exceeds the amount of cash and equivalents used to
fund the account. Example: A client opens a $200K account and deposits only
$100K. This account would be described as 50% “notionally funded.”
Bear in mind that notionally funding an account greatly increases the positive
rate of return on profits as well as the negative rate of return from losses in the account.
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What kind of time horizon should I expect for
an investment of this type?
We generally ask that
clients give this investment a minimum of two years timeframe.
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