Zaner Group: Any Experiences?

[TraderJen 10]

I was referred to Zaner Group by TransAct. No one here on TL has yet to write a thing about Zaner. There isn't much on them on other trader forums either. Does anyone have any experience with these guys? All I know is that they're an IB for TransAct, MF Global and a few others.

 

Note: No, I'm not a shill, but I confess I am a total TL lurker.

[Harlequin 10]

Have I no experience of Zaner but they are a "full service broker". If you are looking for investment/trading advice then ask to see proof of their track record. If you are making your own trading decisions then save yourself the extra commission charges and go direct to Transact or any other FCM.

[TraderJen 10]

Have I no experience of Zaner but they are a "full service broker". If you are looking for investment/trading advice then ask to see proof of their track record. If you are making your own trading decisions then save yourself the extra commission charges and go direct to Transact or any other FCM.

 

A rep from TransAct was actually who referred me to Zaner. I was told that my average ES trades of five round turns/five contracts daily doesn't meet TransAct's volume requirement, so the rep recommended Zaner as well as two other of its IBs; Cannon and Infinity. Among the three brokers I've spoken to besides TransAct (OpenECry, Zaner and Infinity), it was Zaner that quoted the best rate. Hardly a mention of them anywhere though, despite them being around since 1982, so I did a bit of research with the CME and NFA. They seem legit--no flaws on their record since the 80s. Compared to the more frequently mentioned brokers here on TL, that's quite a feat. The Zaner rep seemed more personable, not patronizing or salesman-like. I guess I'll just be the trailblazer, try 'em out and write a review after a few months. I'll marinate on this a few more days to see if I get any responses here.

[Harlequin 10]

TraderJen,

 

There are many other brokers and FCM's about, give a few more a call and play them off against each other for the best commission rates and judge the level of service from how they deal with your inquiries.

 

Good luck and remember you can always move to another broker if it doesn't work out.

[Theodocious 10]

A rep from TransAct was actually who referred me to Zaner. I was told that my average ES trades of five round turns/five contracts daily doesn't meet TransAct's volume requirement, so the rep recommended Zaner as well as two other of its IBs; Cannon and Infinity. Among the three brokers I've spoken to besides TransAct (OpenECry, Zaner and Infinity), it was Zaner that quoted the best rate. Hardly a mention of them anywhere though, despite them being around since 1982, so I did a bit of research with the CME and NFA. They seem legit--no flaws on their record since the 80s. Compared to the more frequently mentioned brokers here on TL, that's quite a feat. The Zaner rep seemed more personable, not patronizing or salesman-like. I guess I'll just be the trailblazer, try 'em out and write a review after a few months. I'll marinate on this a few more days to see if I get any responses here.

 

 

Hi TraderJen: Are you still here? You posted this way back in 2007 and I am looking for an update on Zaner. Can you fill us in? I just spoke to them and they seem legit and have a really low commission costs ($2 rt)

 

Thanks...Theo.

[TraderJen 10]

Hi TraderJen: Are you still here? You posted this way back in 2007 and I am looking for an update on Zaner. Can you fill us in? I just spoke to them and they seem legit and have a really low commission costs ($2 rt)

 

Thanks...Theo.

 

Hey Theodocious... I actually went with Infinity. The guy from Zaner seemed friendly enough but I never got a follow-up after the initial introduction. Anthony Giacomin from Infinity had also contacted me and offered a good rate and was quick to follow up with any of my questions, so that's who I went with. They're both IBs for TransAct so trade execution will be the same. Infinity just seemed more attentive. Anthony's lightning fast with responding. If you do go with Zaner, please do update this thread. It would really be nice to see them mentioned more for those researching brokers.

[diablo272 10]

Hi TraderJen: Are you still here? You posted this way back in 2007 and I am looking for an update on Zaner. Can you fill us in? I just spoke to them and they seem legit and have a really low commission costs ($2 rt)

 

Thanks...Theo.

 

$2/RT? What kind of volume are you doing?

[diablo272 10]

So is that $3.30/RT then, or $4.60/RT ($2 + ($1.30*2 sides))?

[TraderJen 10]

So is that $3.30/RT then, or $4.60/RT ($2 + ($1.30*2 sides))?

 

Oh, I'm sorry, I had a bit of a brain hiccup there with the fees, which are $2.30. They offered me the rate of $4.30 rt all in. That's $2 rt commission + $2.30 exchange fees = $4.30 total rt.

[Theodocious 10]

Yes, I can confirm these rates. Seems if you are hesitant they give you the high volume discount even if you don't say anything about your contracts per day. They also asked about size of the account, and I think 25K can get you this rate.

 

I'll let you know my final decision.

 

Theo--

[thomasanderson 10]

I am a former Zaner Group client. I had horrible experiences with them, and as a consequence i now hate them with the burning passion of seven suns.

 

There was once incident which put things over the top for me. I was in a trade on the TF, a long, and the market was going up nicely for me. When it hit my target and went through it, but i did not fill. i hit the CLOSE button on my ninja DOM, my position remained open.

 

I called up Zaner immediately, and got on the phone with their service guy. I told him my account number, and my problem, and he tried to work his magic. He could not close the position for me either! He said there was a problem between them and the exchange. He called the exchange to get it resolved, but could not get through to them. I was nervous because my position was still open, however the market was still moving in my favour, and instead of being up 10 ticks, i was now up 30 ticks.

 

He said there was nothing he could do until he could get through to someone at the exchange. He suggested that we get off the phone and he would work to get the problem resolved as soon as possible. In the interest of letting him do his job efficiently and close my position quickly, i got off the phone.

 

I watched the TF as it kept climbing. From my initial position i was now onside 60 ticks.

 

About 15 minutes later (i was still up 60 ticks) he called me back and said that their connection problem with the exchange was resolved. He said 'i see that you're short now, are you supposed to be?' I said "NO. My DOM is not showing me short, i have not been entering new trades, and i'm just waiting patiently for you to fix this problem!!" He then closed me out of my short position at a net loss of 40 ticks. Apparently i had been short for quite some time before he called to say so! My DOM certainly did not say that i was short.

 

I asked him about resolving the issue with my account and he said there was nothing i could do. He said that they are NOT responsible for losses that occur because of technical errors on their end. I fought with him over this for a while on the phone, but he just said 'tough luck'. I was feeling ripped off because i was long the market from 60 ticks below where it was currently trading, yet had lost several hundred dollars on the trade.

 

I emailed Matt Zaner to see if he would resolve the problem. He wrote me and said he'd look into it. I didn't hear from him for several days, and wrote him again. No response. Wrote him a week later, he said he'd look into it and resolve it. No resolution. I wrote him a month later, no response. I wrote him two months later, no response.

 

I would highly recommend staying away from this group. They are awful! Please don't give these a**holes your money!

 

Cheers.