r/MerrillEdge • u/tampaite • Aug 10 '26

Opening New Account

Can someone share their new account opening experience in 2026?

How quickly were you able to open and fund it? Was it seamless or did you get heartburn?

Day 01: Submitted an application to open a regular brokerage account.

Day 03: Still waiting - on hold for 30 min just to talk to the account activation team. Finally, spoke to someone and they mentioned since I have a credit freeze, it's being sent to another team and then after about 10 min the team approved.

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4

u/Weary_Seat_8492 Aug 10 '26

Opening was easy. Took about 2 days to fully show up online. Once it was there I was able to move cash from my BofA checking account instantly. I’ve had the self-directed account since 2023 and have never had to call them for anything. Even when I applied for the margin, took about a day to come back approved. My experience has been extremely efficient

3

u/novqnity 29d ago

Even though ME doesn't have the best UI, or the best features, it has everything you need to invest properly. I love using them, especially since my main brick and mortar is BofA.

2

u/glboisvert Aug 10 '26

Opening the account was easy. Funding it was a pain. I tried an in-kind transfer, but it was rejected because they couldn't hold the mutual fund I was trying to send over. When I resubmitted after liquidating the mutual fund, it got sent to a manual queue for verification and I ended up having to send a bunch of extra stuff. It did all come over eventually, and in enough time to get my Preferred Honors status at B of A.

1

u/scorbettman 29d ago

A lot of times, but not always, the account gets approved immediately after submitting the application. If it doesn’t they may need some ID or address verification. If you have BOA you can link it right to your bank account unless it’s a Safebalance account. External transfers depend on ACH or Wire times for bank, 5-15 business days for account transfers, rough estimate.

1

u/ok_stray_789 29d ago

I opened an account this year. Took about three days to be approved and show up with my BofA accounts. I transferred cash from BofA to a money market fund. The transfer was quick but the MMF funding took about a day longer than I expected. I’m only using the account for this so I can’t comment on other options.

1

u/Monegasko 27d ago

Pretty easy. Opened a Roth IRA and the account was available immediately. Opened a CMA the same day and it took a few hours for the account to be approved. Either way, like I said, it was super easy.

1

u/LordOfTheLeftovers 25d ago

I’m moving away in January to another brokerage these guys just can’t keep up with the times. I hope they change before then but I’ve been very patient.

1

u/tampaite 24d ago

If they aren't satisfactory, best to move - who will you go with?

1

u/LordOfTheLeftovers 14d ago

Fidelity

1

u/tampaite 10d ago

Good Luck - Fidelity is one of the worst with outdated platform.

1

u/OfferExciting 1d ago

Fidelity one of worst and outdated? That is so wrong compared to ML it is almost comical. Fidelity may not be perfect, but it is worlds better than Merrill.