Understanding IBKR Flex Reports and Import Security

What is an IBKR Flex Report?

Interactive Brokers Flex Queries (or Flex Reports) are highly customizable, structured data exports generated by the IBKR system. Unlike a standard PDF statement, these reports provide a raw data record of account activity that can be parsed by software.

A Flex Report typically includes:

• Trade Details: Stocks, options, and multi-leg strategies.

• Corporate Actions: Assignments, exercises, and expirations.

• Financials: Commissions, fees, and cash movements.

• Position History: Activity across specific periods.

For Wheel traders, these reports are the "gold standard" of data because they contain the granular transaction history required to reconstruct complex cycles.

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Why Wheelytics Uses Flex Reports

Most brokerage dashboards are designed for trade execution and basic balance tracking, not for specialized strategy analysis. This often leaves a gap in your data. Wheelytics uses Flex Reports to answer critical questions that standard dashboards miss:

• Cycle Attribution: Which specific Put led to a share assignment?

• Cost Basis Tracking: What is the Adjusted Cost Basis (ACB) of a position after multiple Covered Calls?

• Performance Breakdown: How much of your profit came from option premiums versus underlying stock appreciation?

• Status Management: Is a specific Wheel cycle currently active, or has it been fully closed?

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Security: Read-Only Data vs. Trading Access

The most important distinction to understand is the difference between data access and account control.

• Report Access (Read-Only): Wheelytics only requests permission to read your historical trade data. This is a one-way street where data moves from the broker to the analytics engine.

• Trading Access (Full Control): This would allow an application to place trades, move funds, or change account settings. Wheelytics does not request or support trading permissions.

By using report-based imports, you are effectively sharing a structured version of an account statement. It is similar to handing a spreadsheet to an accountant rather than giving them the keys to your house.

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How Your Data is Processed

Once a report is imported, Wheelytics performs the following analytical tasks:

1. Mapping: It identifies related trades (Puts, Assignments, Calls) and groups them into logical "Wheel Cycles."

2. Calculations: It computes your True Break-even (TBE) and Underlying Lifetime ACB.

3. Visualization: It separates realized premium income from unrealized stock P&L to give you a clear view of your strategy's ROI.

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Why This Method is Safer

Many traders are comfortable sharing report data but wary of granting third-party apps direct API access to their brokerage accounts. Report-based workflows provide a significant layer of safety because the system is technically incapable of:

• Executing orders.

• Withdrawing or transferring funds.

• Modifying your existing positions or orders.

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Checklist for Security-Conscious Users

If you are concerned about data security, we recommend checking the following:

• Permission Scope: Does the tool only ask for report access?

• Transparency: Is the import workflow clearly explained?

• Manual Options: Does the tool allow for manual CSV or XLSX uploads as a fallback?

Summary

Interactive Brokers Flex Reports provide the detailed transaction history necessary for professional Wheel analysis. Wheelytics is strictly an analytics tool, not a trading platform. Our goal is to organize your historical data so you don't have to manage complex spreadsheets, all while ensuring we never have the power to act within your brokerage account.