What Every Forex Trader Should Know About ECNs vs. Deal Desks
Many forex traders are concerned about going to an ECN broker and not trading through a deal desk. In this article I hope to shed some light about how this works and what to look for when selecting a broker to make sure that you don’t become a victim of un-just dealing practices.
An ECN dealing model allows the many market participants to execute trades with each other through an electronic network. That’s what an ECN stands for; electronic communications network. As you know, forex is a zero sum game so for every winner there is a loser; for everyone going long there is someone going short. So what an ECN does is match up your order with the order of another market participant. You are probably asking yourself the same question as I asked myself when I first found out about an ECN, will there be a seller every time I am buying and vice versa?
The answer is that there are market makers and banks in the ECN that are consistently taking on trades and hedging their risk. They may have their own buy and sell programs that they are trading on. These banks allow clients to get better liquidity and tighter pricing in the ECN.
One of the most profound benefits of using an ECN is that you get anonymity, as the other participants do not see who is trading on the other end and cannot flag your account and trade directly against you. Another benefit to consider is that you can make your own market in an ECN; meaning you can place orders in between the bid and the ask price. If you are not willing to trade at a particular price point, you are able to place a bid or offer in between the spread in hopes of the ECN finding a fit counterparty.
Alexander Nekritin has a been a professional trader for over 10 years and is the Founder and President of TradersChoiceFX.com. TradersChoiceFX is a Metatrader Forex Brokerage firm that is able to enhance their clients FX trading success through their through their Forex bonus program. TradersChoiceFX also strives to set clients up with the ideal environment for their Forex strategy. You can download a free Metatrader Practice Account from TradersChoiceFX and get instant access to a special report that will teach you how to use a Forex bonus program to improve your success as an FX trader.