Limit, Market, Stop Limit, Stop, and MIT. In that order. Depending on the size Iâm trading and the type of order, fills are anywhere from a second to several seconds in the EP or NQ. Iâm guestimating because I donât pay attention to the exact amount of time. I've always been more than satisfied with the execution speed. Remember, I use to use the phone. Doesnât take much to impress me.
Dear js, While obviousily I try to bring attention to our products I probably placed more trades on DIFFERENT SYSTEMS than most traders out there simply because I use the different systems to place orders (MANY ORDERS) for different clients every day for 4 years now. I want to make it clear that I can provide feedback as a user on different systems that I currently use. That does not mean that I am the only one who can offer these systems. I trade on LeoWeb, BEST direct, PATS, Refco Live and Alaron system on a dialy basis. The one that many people mention and that I have never traded on is the IB platform
elon, Then why don't you give your opinion on all the systems that you trade on. Give your comparison on a side by side basis. If there is a real difference in trading with one and not another. Which one you feel is the simpler or more basic platform but just plain gets the job done, which one has all the bells and whistles if one wants a platform like that. Which ones have the level2 type platform that someone asked about. Give your opinion as a trader and not a broker. I have looked at the patsystem and am trying the bestdirect demo. Which one do you like best and why. I think we all know that you are a broker.
Thanks JS - That makes sense. Just to clarify to everyone the opinion here is as someone who helps many clients trade, therefore placing many orders. Most of the traders here seem to trade mini sp and mini nasdaq. if by any chance you trade OTHER commodities than the best one by far is a software called LEOWEB. It is direct to the trading floor, has a great order desk behind it when you need it and it is very fast. Drawdowns: no P&L in the system and you have to switch windows for the fill. for mini traders: fills are by far the fastest. It connects through TOPS and not globex2 and for some reason during the last few hectic weeks it has been by far the MOST STABLE. However, some people like to have the interface which allows them to view open positions P&L etc. AS far as RELIABILITY it is my favourite. BEST and J-Trader are similiar in ability and features but are displayed differently. J-Trader is fast with multiple windows. PERSONALY I like the window based BEST better. I have clients that trade with both and like J-Trader (PATS) much better. it is a matter of preference. J-Trader is probably a second faster, although I did not notice a difference in fills. BEST is easier to use and has good system messages when you need to know things (globex is down, markets closing early etc.) Both BEST and PATS go through globex and NOT tops. from a personal point of view I like BEST better than PATS while one of my colleagues is the other way around. There is one more system that we started using called REFCO LIVE. We have a simulation on it. I do NOT have enough experience on it yet to provide an honest feedback but it looks interesting. It is WEB INTERFACE but resembles somewhat of a GLOBEX machine. There a few other out there that we offer as well but I think for most traders these should be the main ones and offcourse IB which as I mentioned before I never used it but got some feedback which is more of a hear say. Hope this helped. If you have any specific questions on different features I will be more than happy.
TOPS is a different way to route into globex. here is a introduction on how LEO (we call it e-futures) is all about if you do not wish to download the whole software right now. http://lfg.exocenter.com/demo/efutures-demo.exe
Very helpful post, elon. I have a broker who routes through TOPS and I would agree that, in the past, it has appeared to be more stable. It has also been my experience, albeit limited through this broker, that it has always been somewhat slower. To be fair, this is an âapples to orangesâ comparison, since Iâm speaking of pit executions, and therefore it is not truly informative. By the way js1257, after some active observation and reflection, my previously stated E-mini fill times are probably more likely to be in the 2-10 second range. As I said, it depends on the type of order and the size.
I have two questions. Can anyone compare IB to Tops. I believe IB goes through globex, and I am thinking about using a system that goes through tops. two, on any of these systems, including IB does the user, if he/she so desires get to post on the bid if he is buying and on the offer if he is selling. I have not gotten straight answers from different reps. Logically, you would think that only members of the CME using, I would guess globex, would get the privilege of making a market. It seems on IB, which I experimented with during the summer, I could not make a market only cross it. thanks.