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Started in 2000, OptionsXpress has rapidly captured a large portion of the market in its decade long life. The company does its operation from Chicago, Illinois. In its short life it has garnered many favorable reviews and ratings from the regular customer and well known media groups. It is rated as having an extremely user friendly interface and an intelligent mix of trading and investment options. This firm offers customers in the US and globally the opportunity to trade in various stock options.

OptionsXpress offers its users a variety of trading options and investment opportunities. The users can build a lucrative diverse portfolio comprising a variety of mutual funds, ETFs, fixed income deposits, exchange traded funds and bonds etc. There is no minimum amount required to open a trading account with OptionsXpress. The charges for trading on this portal are $9.95 or $14.95 on all trades (even broker assisted trades). This is a very competitive pricing for their services, given that most online trading portals charge extra for any assistance provided. Some investment options are not available with this portal, such as mortgages backed securities and unit investment trusts.

This service has a simple and complete online application process. Users can register and start trading online immediately. The funds transfer options on this portal are easy to access and process. As soon as an amount is reflected in the online account the user can start trading in stocks.

The standard features available to users who start an account with OptionsXpress are –

•    Flat-rate fees and no minimum account balance requirement
•    Virtual trading available for trial no-risk trading
•    10-day Trial account available
•    Extensive education available, for trading novices and pros
•    Offers numerous unique tools, including the Dragon, TradeWizard and Xspreads Spread Book

The online browser window has a variety of customizable features that allows each user to create their own page. They can set alerts for market news, add live streaming of stocks and shares and access their account information easily. A wide range of trading information, seminars, educational lectures are also available online, providing users with accurate analysis and data to invest better.

Additional features for user of the OptionsXpress portal is the facility to preset trading criteria. Meaning that depending on the users custom choices stocks will be purchased or sold at beneficial costs even if the user is not online. One can continue earning money even if they are not at the computer. The service has recently expanded to include a mobile trading platform. Customers can access their trading information from a mobile phone and even trade via the mobile network.

For the novice user OptionsXpress provides a wide range of educational videos, tutorials, articles and web support. Alongside these features are a dedicated telephonic customer care service and an online chat support that runs out of the two offices for this firm. The vast array of trading tools and investment options that are available with this firm make it a first choice for investors. The constant up gradation of services allows its users to explore various new avenues in finance generation and investments.

The portal has come to boast of a technically superior investment model than other competing online brokerage firms. Over the past couple of years OptionsXpress has acquired a couple of large investment brokers and taken over their business. In 2008, OptionsXpress acquired Open E-Cry in a cash and stock deal valued at $18M and on April 28, 2009 OptionsXpress Holdings, Inc. entered a definitive agreement to acquire Optionetics, Inc. for $20 million. In these recent times of economic fallout, OptionsXpress steadily maintains a high profile among users. It remains a stable and safe portal for investors and continually offers its users the opportunity to reap enormous benefits.