A little more info on opening a US Level II account below, and TradeStation will allow UK accounts. Go to
http://www.tradestation.com and request a free demo CD – they were so keen to get me on board that they actually sent me three CD’s!! The first one arrived by express mail from Plantation, Florida just 2 days after I requested it – very helpful. Also some great demos on the website.
From the info below you can start an account with $10,000 but trading is restricted to 3 trades in 4 days but they will allow margin up to x2. Do 4 trades in 5 days and you become a ‘Pattern Day Trader’ and need $30,000 to get started.
1.What’s the minimum deposit required to open a TradeStation Securities account?
The minimum deposit required to open an equity trading account with us is $30,000 for Pattern Day Trading Accounts and $10,000 for Non-Day Trading Accounts. To determine which type of account applies to you, maintenance requirements for each account are listed below:
Pattern Day Trading Accounts: Based on NASD and NYSE day trading rules, any account that places 4 day-trades in a 5 trading day period is permanently deemed to be a “Pattern Day Trading” account. Pattern Day Trading Accounts must maintain a minimum daily equity balance of US $25,000. If the account balance falls below $25,000, trading is restricted to closing transactions only until the account balance is increased to $25,000.
Non-Day Trading Accounts: Non-Day Trading Accounts (an account that has never placed 4 day-trades in a 5 trading day period) must maintain a minimum daily equity balance of at least $5,000. Non-Day Trading Accounts with balances less than $25,000 are restricted to 3 opening transactions per day, less the number of day trades made in the preceding 4 trading days. For example, if you have made 2 day-trades in the preceding 4 trading days, you will be permitted to place 1 new opening transaction (Buy or Sell Short) on the current day. You will still be able to place as many closing transactions (Sell, Cover) as you would like on the current day. Based on NASD and NYSE day trading rules, an account who places 4 day-trades in any 5-day period will be deemed to be a “Pattern Day Trading” account permanently. See “Pattern Day Trading Account” requirements above.
Regards, TradeSmart