Since this topic regarding stops with IB has been an endless debate, please note that I HAVE tried to do my homework with some searches before posting this thread. There was one brief mention that even if a stop order was routed directly to ARCA, the trigger of that stop order wouldn't be made until IB's rules were met (i.e. sell stop triggered by 2 ask prints). However, if you look at Archipelago's website, you'll see that stop orders held on their system are triggered when it prints at the stop price: http://www.tradearca.com/technology/system/order_types.asp Does anyone know for certain whether stop orders routed directly to ARCA follow the trigger rules for ARCA or IB? In the event ARCA routed stop orders still follow IB's trigger rules, wouldn't it be nice if IB changed it so that it follows ARCA's rules? That way, we would all have the option of choosing how we want our stops triggered! I find that using IB's stop orders to open buy positions in relatively thinly traded (wider spreads) stocks which break out of intraday consolidations don't work well, although IB's stop loss orders have saved me a few times from getting closed out of trades prematurely.
http://www.interactivebrokers.com/html/retailAccount/products.html As this page shows, IB offers simulated stops on ARCA, triggered by 2 ask/bid prints. voodoo