Effective August 6, 2009
In order to receive a $100 Bonus for opening a new OptionsXpress account, you need to be invited by a current account holder. The terms and conditions are very favorable once you receive an invitation because it's available to all new investors and not subject to a target area or predefined market. You will need to deposit $500 into the account and activate a trade to receive your $100 Thank You, cash reward. Even though the word "options" is listed in their name, OptionsXpress is not restricted for just futures, options or commodities type investing. Just like the basic and no frills accounts at an Ameritrade or Etrade for example, you can simply buy/(go long) as little as one share of equity/stock. Keep in mind that you need to keep your original cost basis of $500 in the account for 180 days to keep your $100 bonus validated. After that, you can withdraw your principal plus bonus with no hidden fees or early termination penalty. From the time your app gets approved, you can earn additional $100 blocks by inviting your family, co-workers et al. But keep in mind that a trade (minimum of 1 share) needs to be executed to trigger your cash bonus. Unfortunately, qualified accounts like IRA's do not receive the $100 bonus; it must be a non-qualified account to avail yourself of the $100 bonus. However, you can call customer service for special offers on transferring or rolling over your qualified or retirement type accounts.

From my experience, there is no hard credit pull from OptionsXpress. This was a soft review and speedy approval process, even lighter and quicker than a traditional bank with chexsystems etc.

How hard/easy to get this bonus amount? Does it need lots of calling?
I am in the market for opening new account.

Edit: Thanks for replying in regards to the invitation.

buy a short term liquid instrument like a short term bond fund

shallot said:JuNooNi said:any current account holder want to invite me?
How hard/easy to get this bonus amount? Does it need lots of calling?
I am in the market for opening new account.
One trade costs $14.95 to buy and another $14.95 to sell. The net bonus is really $70. There's also the potential to lose money on the trade so it is not risk free. $70 out of a $500 investment over 6 months gives an approx effective yield of 28%. It's not bad, but it is a lot of work.Alternatively, buy a deep out-of-the-money option for almost nothing and let it expire worthless, or buy a share of something very cheap and hold it. DW did that for 2 $500 bonuses, and we still are the proud owners of 1 FNM

cjc9024 said:Im' interested in the bonus, how much does a "deep out of the money option" cost? $5? (I know we lose ~$30 executing the buy and sell)

I don't know what the minimum $ value is for buying an "option" (something I really dont understand or care to as long as I can make a buck on this LOL)There are numerous options for .01 to .02 out there, but why not buy 1 share of FNM or something like that for $1 or so? You don't have to sell it to collect the bonus; at least I didn.t.