How do I convert currency in my Interactive Brokers (IBKR) account?

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Accepted Answer

Interactive Brokers (IBKR) offers multiple ways to convert currency in your account.

Here is a comprehensive guide on how to perform currency conversions:

Using the Convert Currency Tool

Steps:

Open the Trade menu and select "Convert Currency"
Choose the "Currency I Have" (source currency with a positive balance)
Select the "Currency I Want" (target currency)
Enter an amount in either the "From" field (amount to convert) or the "To" field (desired converted amount)
Preview the order details
Submit the order

Please Note: This process creates a market order for the conversion.

Manual Forex Order

You can also place a manual order for currency conversion on any IBKR trading platform:

Search for the currency pair (e.g., EUR.USD for converting USD to EUR)
The action (Buy/Sell) will be for the first currency in the pair. In other words, if you would like to be long EUR 500 you would place a trade to Buy 500 EUR.USD.
Enter the quantity in terms of the first currency in the pair. You can also have the system calculate order quantity based on a monetary value.
Review and submit the order

Using Trader Workstation (TWS) to close a currency balance:

From the Account menu, select Account Window
Scroll to the Market Value-Real FX Balance section
Right-click on the balance you wish to close
Select either "Close Currency Balance" for a single currency or "Close All Non-base Currency Balances" for all non-base currencies
The order(s) will appear on your screen ready for submission.
Then transmit the order(s).

Please Note

Settlement: Standard settlement period for currencies is T+2 (two business days), except for CAD/USD, which is T+1 (one business day).
Commissions: IBKR charges competitive commissions on spot currency trades and conversions, starting at 0.20 basis points * trade value, with a minimum of 2.00 USD (or USD currency equivalent) per order.
Order Types: Using a Market (MKT) order type may result in rejection due to margin requirements.
Automatic Conversions: For Cash accounts and IRA accounts, automatic conversions may occur under specific circumstances as outlined in the IBKR Client Agreement. This is to ensure sufficient settled cash to pay for purchases and commissions.
Margin Accounts: If you have a margin account, you can trade using unsettled funds without triggering automatic conversions.
Supported Currencies: IBKR supports a wide range of currencies, including USD, EUR, GBP, CHF, CAD, JPY, AUD, NZD, HKD, SGD, and many others. However, some currencies like INR (Indian Rupee) cannot be converted.
Currency Pair Availability: Only one symbol is available for each currency pair (e.g., EUR.USD is available, but USD.EUR is not).

Additional Information