Canadian online trading service provider Questrade is set to make some improvements to its IQ Edge trading platform later this week.

On April 21, the company will release the latest version of its IQ Edge platform – 5.7.8. With this mandatory update, the company adds new features, including short-selling automation. In short, with a few exceptions, traders will no longer need to manually confirm borrowing rates. Payment confirmations can now be submitted directly from the platform.

Before entering a short position, traders will receive a message indicating how much it would cost per day to borrow the selected security (if applicable) along with their order confirmation. If a trader accepts payment and trade, their order will be sent to the exchange and they will be charged for each full day they hold the short position.

The broker notes that the borrowing rate is floating; it can change throughout the day until 2 p.m. ET. Rates fluctuate depending on the market value of the security, demand and available inventory. If the fee increases beyond the amount a trader is willing to pay, all a trader will need to do is close their short position by 5:30 p.m. ET to avoid being charged.

As for clients holding short positions, the company says that starting April 23, it may start charging them for holding selected securities short in their account.

In order to find the current rates of their existing short positions, traders will need to log into the trading platform on April 21. Once logged in, they should go to “Positions” and hover over the “R” icon. If they are unwilling to pay the fee, they must cover their short positions by 5:30 p.m. ET on Monday, April 23.

IQ Edge users will receive an email notification on April 21 to update their platform. If they are using Questrade Trading or Mobile, these platforms will update automatically – no action is required from traders.

Speaking of IQ Edge improvements, note that new trading platforms are being added to Time & Sales. New features include:

• View EDGA, CX2, CXD, ICX, LIQ, LYX and MCRY transactions on Time & Sales;
• List of new trading venues for OPRA, NYSE, NASDAQ and Canadian ATS.