Ecn?

IB, i've used them for a good while over the years.. good stuff, decent rates if you trade size which is why i use them.. front end could be better and of course forget the help desk.. they are mainly for people that know what they are doing.. also they are capped at 40:1 which honestly is still over kill

API is also free to use but you get charged extra with different rates depending on what your trading.. (they are a full broker)

Most of this old thread still applies

http://www.elitetrader.com/vb/showthread.php?threadid=182352
 
IB is not an ECN, nor do they pretend to be.

Just FYI

Good broker for US residents, but not good for people starting off since their minimums and commissions make small trades quite expensive.
 
Quote from KingJedi:

IB, i've used them for a good while over the years.. good stuff, decent rates if you trade size which is why i use them.. front end could be better and of course forget the help desk.. they are mainly for people that know what they are doing.. also they are capped at 40:1 which honestly is still over kill

API is also free to use but you get charged extra with different rates depending on what your trading.. (they are a full broker)

Most of this old thread still applies

http://www.elitetrader.com/vb/showthread.php?threadid=182352
More...
yeah, that's a good old thread

I've used ib for years, but have only been trading forex for about a year. I never bothered to learn how to use their fx trader. I like the old tws screen since I can set it up anyway I want and keep my eye on stocks and bonds and whatever else I am watching.

also , like the man said, I have never been charged double for crosses, that must be an old myth

as far as max order, as I understand it, there is no max, but over 5m (depending on currency) they will split it, it is all instantaneous
 
Quote from Jack_Larkin:

IB is not an ECN, nor do they pretend to be.
More...

Wrong. They're an ECN for sure.

Hallmarks of a non-ECN broker (i.e. bucketshop):

1) Fixed bid/ask spread
2) Broker is the counterparty
3) Synthetic bid/ask provided by broker
4) No market depth

With ECNs the bid/ask is real based on other traders' bids/asks. There's a market depth you can trade. Bid/ask spread varies with supply/demand of the market, not synthetically fixed.
 
Technically they are ECN 'like' in structure which is tbe best your going to get in the retail sector.. you have to have good sized capital and huge volume to go up the food chain... i think TROs thread has more detail in it someone else posted
 
Quote from stevegee58:

Wrong. They're an ECN for sure.

Hallmarks of a non-ECN broker (i.e. bucketshop):

1) Fixed bid/ask spread
2) Broker is the counterparty
3) Synthetic bid/ask provided by broker
4) No market depth

With ECNs the bid/ask is real based on other traders' bids/asks. There's a market depth you can trade. Bid/ask spread varies with supply/demand of the market, not synthetically fixed.
More...

The only change I'll make to my statement is the 'pretend' part. A while ago they didn't present themselves or IdealPRO like they do now.

They are "ECN-Like" at best. Which is fine, they are still a good broker.

They end up being your initial counter party to the trade. A lot of ECN shops do this but it's important to understand since that gives them a lot more control over prices dealt than you might expect.

For instance, when you aggregate multiple liquidity providers in today's market, the spread on most majors will drop down to 0.1-0.2 pips and sometimes even match off at zero (possible since most LPs are 'providing' only.) IB, however, doesn't seem to get down there often at all.

Again, they are a good broker.. but before the marketing change on IdealPRO, they were very clear about making the market and dealing. Not that there's anything wrong with that.
 
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