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BlogWhat is the difference between a market maker and a direct access broker?
A market maker provides liquidity by taking the opposite side of your trade, operating a dealing desk that sets the bid-ask prices. A direct access (ECN/STP) broker routes your orders straight to external liquidity providers, acting only as a medium and typically offering variable spreads.
What this looks like across the brokers we track
Of the 37 brokers BrokerAnalysis tracks that state an execution model, 20 are ECN, 10 are Market maker / dealing desk, 6 are STP, 1 is No dealing desk. Execution model is self-declared by the broker, not independently audited.
Measured across 37 entities in the BrokerAnalysis dataset. See the full broker comparison
Answer
A market maker provides liquidity by taking the opposite side of your trade, operating a dealing desk that sets the bid-ask prices. A direct access (ECN/STP) broker routes your orders straight to external liquidity providers, acting only as a medium and typically offering variable spreads.
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