Finding a Broker
Fri, Dec 5 2008, 11:30 GMT
by Joe Ross
Trading Educators Inc. | View company's profile
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Finding a Broker
“Hey Joe!
I need help finding a broker. I notice that discount commission rates are pretty much the same.
So how do I choose?”
Commission is definitely not the most important factor in choosing
a broker. Most important in choosing a brokerage firm is the per trade
slippage, the difference between the stop order price and execution
price.
Based o a study I saw some years back, ten orders were placed with
five commission houses. All orders were priced in the same market at
the same price, before the market opened. The difference in slippage
from worst to best was over $800. Slippage one year for
Rosenthal-Collins trading one and two contracts of the S&P, was
over $20,000 per account. The floor broker for the majority of those
trades was Mario De Bartolo. All the fills were supposedly legal. One
order for 15 contracts was to sell at 45. The market took over two
minutes to fall in one-tick increments to even money, at 00, before an
up tick. All 15 contracts were unbelievably filled at 00. Slippage on
the order was $3,375. A week later another order was slipped over
$2,000, then all accounts were closed. Coffee once had the daily high
and low in the opening range. I was filled on my buy stop and sell stop
at the high and low of the day, 360 points times three. Legalized
theft. The broker could have taken both sides of the orders. New York
markets are notorious for their slippage, as is the Chicago pork belly
market.
Any broker who allows this kind of slippage to occur on his
customer’s orders is not worth having as a broker. There are brokerage
firms that carefully monitor the kinds of fills their customers are
getting from the floor. If the fills are bad, they will dump the bad
floor broker and use another. Bad floor brokers can be penalized that
way. They lose the business. A good broker will do battle for his/her
customers. That’s why we use the broker we are currently using. If you
want a referral, let me know. I’ll be happy to give it.
Published on
Fri, Dec 5 2008, 11:30 GMT
Trading Educators Inc.
http://www.tradingeducators.com | info@tradingeducators.com
Legal disclaimer and risk disclosure
Trading foreign exchange on margin carries a high level of risk, and may not be suitable for all investors. The high degree of leverage can work against you as well as for you. Before deciding to trade foreign exchange you should carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite. The possibility exists that you could sustain a loss of some or all of your initial investment and therefore you should not invest money that you cannot afford to lose. You should be aware of all the risks associated with foreign exchange trading, and seek advice from an independent financial advisor if you have any doubts.
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