A trading methodology where orders are aggregated by matching criteria (such as price) and automatically matched if a buy and sell agree. It is in contrast with a market-maker market where all orders are traded with the market maker and against his quote. The methodology is often called "order driven" or "broker-to-broker." The distinguishing feature of this methodology is that orders trade directly against each other without first trading through an intermediary, theoretically narrowing spreads in liquid markets.

"BBO" The highest price a buyer is willing to pay, and the lowest price a seller is willing to offer, with the quantity they’re willing trade. It is expressed as a "quote" such as "Anglo 1000 96 x 97 200." The BBO in Anglo is 1000 shares bid at 96 and 200 shares offered at 97. In an order matching system, the BBO is calculated by the system by aggregating buy and sell orders by price.

DST MarketWorks / Broker Front Office system. A system which is used by a Broker company to link to an Exchange system, to send orders, receive reports, provide client credit-checking and position tracking, basket and portfolio features and other trading (Front Office) functions.

The price at which a buyer is willing to buy.

The "trading area" where a given type of trading transaction takes place. The Trading System contains "logical" boards called Main Board, Odd Lot Board, Special Terms Board, Market Maker Board, and Report-only Board. Each board has particular rules and procedures, which must be followed to trade there.

A file (paper or electronic) of orders. A "private" book refers to a trader’s or firm’s own collection of orders that have been withheld from the market. The "public" book, or main book, or automatic match book refers to all of the disclosed round lot orders in the market. The odd lot book refers to the place where small orders with volume less than one board lot are routed. The special terms book is for orders with conditions attached.

A communications protocol in which there is one transmitter and many receivers. Typically, the central Trading System will always be the transmitter and the users will always be the receivers of the broadcast. A Trading System broadcast may consist of various market statistics and raw market data such as last sales and quotes.

See "Member"

An instruction to acquire a security in exchange for money.

DST MarketWorks / Broker Web Access. BWA provides an internet access for connecting broker clients, be they individual investors or institutions to BFO for the entry or orders, receipt of reports and other market information and client activity.

The process of terminating an order that has not been completely matched.

A message sent by the Trading System to the user affirming and verifying execution of an order. The message gives the price, security identification, quantity, and other information about the trade.

An order term, which specifies that an order’s unexecuted quantity, should be automatically canceled by the system at the end of the trading day.

See "trade."

The process of submitting a request to buy or sell securities to the exchange system, via either BFO or BWA.

Generally a facility for bringing together purchasers and sellers of securities. It usually implies a regulated facility.

See "Member ID."

An order term specifying that an order’s unexecuted quantity will not be cancelled until it is matched or manually cancelled by the user. The maximum length of time an order can remain in the system is seven (7) calendar days.

Individual investors are allowed to use BFO to view a subset of the market information available to traders.

The last previous traded price for a security.

An order term specifying how long unexecuted portions of an order are to stay in the book before being canceled. A "day" order has an order lifetime of the trading day it was entered and any unexecuted quantities will be canceled at the end of the trading day. Other terms include Good Till Canceled (GTC) and Good Till Date (GTD).

An order with a specified maximum price or "priced order." An order that specifies the maximum price that a buyer will pay or the minimum price a seller will accept.

The maximum price at which an order may be executed. For example, a sell limit order can only be executed at the limit price or higher. Similarly, a buy limit order can be executed only at the limit price or lower.

The main board or trading "area" where round-lot public orders are automatically routed and matched. Market Maker obligation orders are also automatically matched on the Main Board.

A calculation of the value of a market or market sector based on the prices of the securities in the index. A market index is often a weighted calculation, where individual securities are weighted by their market capitalization or percentage of the overall marketplace.

A collection of market statistics that give an overall picture of how the market is performing. Indicators might include a general index, total value traded, total number of trades, etc.

An order to buy or sell at the best prices available. Also known as a "Market Priced" order. A market order is to be executed at the best bid or offer price existing in the Main Order Book at the time the order is received by the system. If the order cannot be completely filled at the best price, it will match against orders at worse price(s) until it is filled; any unmatched quantity is cancelled. If no contra orders exist, the "at market" order is not allowed.

Also "execute" or "fill." A "match" occurs when a buy order and a sell order agree on the matching criteria (quantity, price, and any order conditions) and are combined to create a deal or trade.

A Stock Exchange, Inc. member firm company that engages in stockbroking activities. A member ID is a symbol used to identify a Stock Exchange, Inc. member firm. Also referred to as Firm ID or Broker ID.

A price at which a seller is willing to sell.

An order to trade a security that has an unfilled quantity available for execution. Open orders are included in the ranked list based on price and time priority.

A commitment to buy or sell a specified quantity of a security at an indicated price, subject to any attached terms or conditions. When two orders match, a trade is created.

The process of comparing orders in the order book to create trades.

A file (paper or electronic) of orders. A "private" order book refers to a user’s own collection of orders. A "public" order book refers to all the disclosed open orders in the system order book.

An identification number assigned by the Trading System to every order entered. A date/order number combination will always uniquely identify an order.

The representation of the current BBO for a security. It is generally the best bid and the best offer at a moment in time.

Also, the current price at which a market maker is willing to trade.

A stock / non-convertible debenture. An instrument that is traded on the exchange.

The process of effecting an order for acquiring money in exchange for a security.

One part of a trade, that is, the buyer or seller.

Also "quantity" or "volume". Generally in reference to the number of shares in an order, trade, or position.

The price difference between a bid and offer for a security. For example, if XYZ is quoted at 10 x 12, the spread is 2, or the difference between the bid and the offer.

A listed company traded on THE Trading System.

The process of withdrawing an order from the market. Suspended orders can be "un-suspended" and re-instated. When an order is suspended, the disclosed volume is set to zero.

A list of securities which, on a percentage or point basis, have the largest gain in value. Typically shown for the top 10 stocks.

A list of traded securities, which, on a percentage or point basis, have suffered the largest loss in value. Typically shown for the worst performing 10 stocks.

An agreement to deliver securities at a specified price. An order produces a transaction once it’s been matched and is binding on the two parties.

A trader is an Trading System user who uses the MarketWorks functions for buying and selling stocks, making markets, and review market information.

The unique ID assigned in Trading System for each individual trader.

A unique number assigned to each trade done on the system. This number is recycled daily so that each trade is uniquely identified by the date of execution and trade number. Also known as confirmation number or transaction number.

The part of an automated Trading System responsible for the actual consolidation and matching of orders.

A situation where trading is temporarily stopped in one or more securities.

The price multiplied by the number of shares is the value of a trade. The maximum value for a trade is a Trading System parameter that may be determined by the Stock Exchange, Inc..

The number of shares on an order, quote, advertisement, or trade. Same as "size."