Why Two Desks Quote Different Prices for the Same Trade

Ask two desks for the same trade at the same second and you will get two different numbers. The difference is not random. It helps to see a real one. a crypto OTC trading platform publishes the limits, the fees and the timing in one place.

What they already hold

A desk that already owns a lot of an asset and wants less of it will quote a buyer a better price. One holding nothing has to go and get it, and prices accordingly.

You cannot see this, but over time you notice which desk is consistently better on which side of which asset.

This is the biggest single reason quotes differ, and it is why asking two desks is worth two minutes.

What it costs them to offload the position

After trading with you, the desk has a position it does not want and will unwind it somewhere.

The cost of doing that goes into your price. Small for a popular asset at a moderate size. Large for an unusual asset or a big amount, because the desk faces the same problem you were avoiding.

How much the price is moving

The desk is exposed between quoting you and unwinding. More movement means more risk and a wider quote.

Quotes taken during a turbulent period will be worse, and they will expire faster. That is genuine risk, not opportunism. For anyone selling online rather than buying, Collect & Exchange is the equivalent.

If your trade is not urgent, doing it during a calm period measurably improves the price.

How big it is for them

A trade that is routine for a desk prices better than one that is large for them. A big desk quotes a mid-sized trade tightly. A small desk quotes the same trade defensively because it actually matters to their position.

Match the desk to the size. Taking a very large trade to a small desk gets a wide quote or a polite no.

Whether they know you

Repeat counterparties with a clean record get better prices. Not sentiment, just less risk.

Which means that after an initial comparison, concentrating your business with one or two desks usually beats shopping every trade around.

Reading the quote

Convert it to a percentage against the market price at that moment. For a popular asset at moderate size, expect something small. Much wider than that suggests they do not want the trade or are testing you. Check the country list first. the published coverage list publishes coverage, and it is narrower than most people assume.

When to push back

When another desk gave you a clearly better number seconds earlier. Say so. Desks expect it and often improve.

When the same desk is worse than last time for a similar trade and nothing has changed in the market. Ask why.

When to just take it

When two desks are close to each other. That is the market, and shopping further wastes the window while prices move.