Securities Lending and Borrowing

Selling stocks short can be a straight-forward process on IBKR’s award-winning Trader Workstation platform (TWS). In this lesson you will learn how to find the number of shares available to short held at IB and the fee rate associated with selling short any stock.

In a normal short sale transaction, Interactive Brokers does not arrange to borrow stock on the client’s behalf until settlement, also known as T+2. In the case of a preborrow, Interactive Brokers will attempt to borrow stock on the client’s behalf the day the pre-borrow request is submitted.

Did you know that IB clients may earn additional income on their fully-paid shares by lending those shares to IB for on-lending to short sellers that are willing to pay to borrow them? Join us as we explore IB’s Stock Yield Enhancement Program.

If you ever wondered precisely what has to happen when shares are sold short, this lesson describes it perfectly. The mechanics behind short sale transactions are detailed one step at a time to help viewers understand what the investor must do, and more importantly, what his broker must do to prevent the trade from failing.

Understanding the role of Regulation T of the Federal Reserve Board may help viewers better understand the concept of margin for short sellers. This video lesson neatly summarizes the key concepts and requirements facing investors wanting to sell short stocks at Interactive Brokers.