FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla. & SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--TradeKing and Zecco, two innovators in the online brokerage industry, announced today the merger of the two firms has officially closed. This merger creates a new, single holding company for both firms called TradeKing Group, Inc., and paves the way for the firms to begin detailed integration planning.
For the immediate future, both brokerage firms will continue to operate as they have been with separate brands, websites, trading platforms and service channels. While TradeKing and Zecco customers will not notice any immediate changes to their trading experience, eventually the best product features and customer service attributes of both firms will be combined to make up a unified new brand and trading experience operating under the familiar TradeKing name.
“The mission of the new TradeKing represents the values long championed by both companies: that is, to continually put our customers first, empower them to take control of their own financial futures through low, fair pricing and innovative tools, and create a place where every investor feels valued,” said Don Montanaro, CEO of TradeKing Group. “Our respective customer bases can rest assured they’ll experience nothing but business-as-usual as we drill into the specifics of the merged firm. This includes benefiting from even more features for the same low $4.95 per stock or options trade, plus 65 cents per options contract -- today, tomorrow and after the integration is complete.”
While TradeKing has been selected as the name for the soon-to-be combined brokerage offering, the new TradeKing will be more than simply the sum of its two parts. To help communicate that, the company will be creating a new brand identity to represent the blending of TradeKing and Zecco. This will include a new logo and other design elements to match its new offerings and trading experience.
“Now that we have reached this important milestone, we are free to put the detailing of our integration planning into motion,” said Michael Raneri, Vice Chairman and Head of Corporate Development for TradeKing Group. “We are committed to taking a careful and methodical approach to the integration by thinking through every change and communicating clearly to ensure the end result is an even better and more satisfying trading experience for our customers.” In addition to Raneri's role on the board of directors, he will focus corporate development efforts on driving growth through acquisitions, business development and partnerships for TradeKing, as well as incubating new lines of business and revenue streams.
TradeKing Group has a combined customer base of more than 500,000 accounts and several billion dollars in customer assets.
About TradeKing Group, Inc.
TradeKing Group, Inc. is a holding company for online broker/dealers TradeKing and Zecco Trading. TradeKing (www.tradeking.com) is a nationally licensed online stock and options broker offering simple, low cost online trading fees.1 A pioneer in integrating new financial social media as part of its innovative online equities, options trading and fixed-income trading platform, TradeKing has received multiple discount broker awards from top industry sources and was rated best in customer service by SmartMoney2 Magazine for the third consecutive year. (June 2012 SmartMoney Broker Survey). Zecco3 (www.zecco.com) is an online brokerage site for stock, options, and forex traders. With low commission rates, extensive free research and tools, and spectacular customer service, Zecco offers an outstanding value in stock and options trading.
Options involve risk and are not suitable for all investors. For more information, please review the Characteristics and Risks of Standard Options brochure before you begin trading options. Options investors may lose the entire amount of their investment in a relatively short period of time.
TradeKing and Zecco provide self-directed investors with discount brokerage services through their FINRA-registered subsidiaries, and do not make recommendations or offer investment, financial, legal or tax advice. The content of this press release is provided for educational and informational purposes only, does not constitute a recommendation to enter in any of the securities transactions or to engage in any of the investment strategies presented herein, and does not represent the opinions of TradeKing, Zecco or their employees.
Online trading has inherent risks due to system response and access times that vary due to market conditions, system performance and other factors. An investor should understand these and additional risks before trading.
(1) TradeKing was ranked #1 in Customer Service in the SmartMoney June 2012 Broker Survey based on the following categories: Commissions and Fees, Mutual Funds & Investment Products, Banking Services, Trading Tools, Research, and Customer Service. SmartMoney is a registered trademark of SmartMoney, a joint publishing venture between Dow Jones & Company, Inc. and Hearst Partnership. Supporting documentation for any claims, comparison, statistics, or other technical data, will be supplied upon request by calling 877-495-5464 or via email at service@tradeking.com.
(2) $4.95 for equity and option trades, add 65 cents per option contract. TradeKing charges an additional $0.35 per contract on certain index products where the exchange charges fees. TradeKing adds $0.01 per share on the entire order for stocks priced less than $2.00. See our Commissions + Fees page at www.tradeking.com/rates for details on commissions on low-priced stocks, option spreads, and other securities.
(3) Zecco Trading is an online stock brokerage that offers low cost stock trades and options trades. We are a discount stock broker and charge only $4.95 per online stock trade. Options trades are only $4.95 each plus $0.65 per contract. For more details, margin rates, online commissions for stocks priced under $1 and other charges, please visit pricing and fees.