Okay, too much arguing on the observation thread, so lets have it in numbers. and please no double polling.
In my previous posts on the observation thread, I mentioned that an electronic system is better than the specialist system. This doesn't mean the specialists are bads or crooked as present in our perception. In contrast, the specialist are designed to protect investors by ensuring a fair and orderly market in a given security. Without an orderly or smooth market, a security could be easily manipulated by the big investors since there will be a big gap in prices in a short period of time. The profiteer will take advantage in a panic period. In the past, there's no computer to ensure an orderly market. TraderA buy n shares from TraderB at x price and right a way sell to TraderC at x + 10% because TraderC has no clue what is the fair price. And the specialists were there to prevent this kind of scenarios. It happens from time to time, the specialists didn't do their jobs correctly. However, an electronic system cannot ensure a perfect market, there's always corruption, but maybe better with lesson learned from NASD.
I don't want a fully electronic system: beauty of BB is the huge trends on upgrades and earnings and a much more orderly mkt...naz is atrocious in these regards, stocks with news are all over the place and difficult to read, I don't care if the spec steals (once in a while ;D), he never stole from me anyways.
It sounds like crooked is in the lead. I wonder who the person who voted angels was, lol. (Maybe it was the incorrect spelling!)
From my experience there are some specialists who clearly dont always make a fair market and there are others who are just fine. I know that many traders at my firm complain about the specs in PD and X as giving very bad fills a good % of the time. I think they key is to get to know how stocks trade more or less and therefore you can anticipate where to get out. Usually, when I do this, I tend to get normal fills. Its only when I hesistate that one split second that I turn a 30 cent profit into a 2 cent profit in one print. Plus I also know now which stocks I can get away with sending a market order into a spread up/down and which ones I cant. Unfortunately, the only way to truly know this is to take a few bad hits
How would you rate the big bully order on the Euro last month at around 1.20? Was that the fault of the system or the regulators? And how would you regulate such bully orders?
Remeber the XOM order though a few months back? I think the specialist did an excellent job considering the volume and th GS screw up
Does anyone know if there is a method for reporting specialist manipulation. Any phone number we can call to ask why we got screwed. eg Why did the amd specialist close the book at even dollar, then not fill us, then let 10000 shares pull and then give us an exclusive print..... 5 cents away from the closest ecn? There must be some method for holding these people responsible. Or at the very least, getting some kind of explaination from someone in the position to give it. (Even if its a bull sh#t one)
I love the AMD specialist, it is like the ARCA and Island fills are from specialist that trying to steal money from traders, by posting fake close book, exclusive prints all kinds of tricks. Cost me roughly $400 today just for AMD!! About trying to file a complain...haha you are playing a game that the odd is against you, the specialists maintain an orderly market YET trade on their account, how do you beat them??? For anyone trying to rely on regulators like SEC, good luck.