Execution quality and trading evidence

What should an execution test answer?

An unexpected price is first an observation. It must be checked whether it can be explained by suitable quote, quantity, time and agreed execution conditions. Only then can concrete contradictions be identified. Poor trading success and faulty execution are different questions.

The check starts with a single job and its data chain: What was sent, what confirmed, which part executed and which position changed as a result? Several transactions are followed by a statistical analysis. This page provides a comprehensible audit trail and a price comparison laboratory, not an automatic broker judgment.

Display, submission, acceptance and execution

The quote on the screen comes from a certain time. The click creates a request. Shipping, network transport and processing may take further time. The execution or rejection is a later event. The difference between click rate and fill can therefore contain both market change and execution effect.

Orders, deals and positions are separate objects. One order can generate several partial fills. Their quantities and prices must be examined individually or using correct weights. A partially filled order must not be analysed as though the full requested quantity had been filled. Order statuses and filling guidelines →

Selecting the Right Reference

For a buy, compare the fill with the corresponding Ask; for a sell, use Bid. Last and a mid-price are different measures. The reference must also relate to the same product, maturity and relevant trading time. A CFD referencing a later-dated future cannot simply be compared with a cash index.

Fictitious: Bid 100, Ask 100,20, Buy-Fill 100,20. There is no discrepancy against Ask. Against Bid, the purchase is 0.20 more expensive; this difference explains the spread here. A buy-fill 100.50, on the other hand, is 0.30 above this ask. Whether the quote still existed at the time of filling and covered the quantity is another question.

A reference at the time of submission measures a different phenomenon than an appropriately synchronized quote for processing. Both can be useful, but must not be named the same. Reference market, quote and quantitative conditions →

Interactive comparison of execution

Separate slippage, requote and rejection

Slippage is a price deviation from a given reference. Our laboratory defines positive values as unfavorable: Buy-Fill minus Reference-Ask or Reference-Bid minus Sales-Fill. Negative values are more favorable. In other systems, the sign convention may be different; definition and unit are part of the key figure.

A requote is a new pricing, not a completed fill. A rejection also initially has no execution price. Both, however, influence tradability and comparison of results. Those who only evaluate successfully filled deals may miss out on important events. An expiration due to validity or an own cancellation is again classified differently.

clarify time and data quality first

The MT5 help distinguishes Journal and Experts log. Journal times are displayed according to the time zone of the user computer according to the documentation; daily logs and expert logs are in separate directories. Therefore, do not equate local journal time without checking with server or external market hours.

Document for merging: time zone, daylight saving time, time format, resolution and known clock deviations. Two-second-accurate entries do not prove an order within the same second. A network latency estimation is not a measured overall execution path. Data without milliseconds does not give rise to such precision through subsequent formatting.

What documents help?

Backup original files unchanged, use copies for work, and record origin and collection time. A hash can reveal later changes; it does not prove that the content was true when it was created. Targeted pseudonymisation of account identifiers and personal data prior to sharing. Exporting Reports · Logs and error diagnosis

Consider quantity and weighting

Two fills: 3 units to 100.20 and 7 to 100.40 add up to the volume-weighted price (3 × 100.20 + 7 × 100.40) / 10 = 100.34. The simple mean 100.30 is wrong here. Based on Ask 100.20, the weighted deviation is 0.14 per unit.

For different instruments, raw price deviations shall not be averaged arbitrarily. Tick sizes, multipliers, currencies and order quantities differ. The monetary effect and the tick deviation answer various questions. Even a few large orders can characterize a quantity-based means.

Which key figures are meaningful?

Document for a series: number of all relevant requests, filled and rejected shares, partial versions, favorable/unfavorable/neutral deviations, median and peripheral areas as well as the respective reference definition. Divide results by symbol, order type, quantity and market phase, if the database shows.

An apparent asymmetry can be an approach to research. For a reliable statement, customer order mix, available quotes and selection of observations must be taken into account. From a few unfavorable fills no manipulation follows; from a positive average no complete fair treatment of all orders follows.

Observation, anomaly and established finding

Observation: The price deviates from a given comparison rate. Conspicuity: Repeated, undeclared deviations deserve further scrutiny. Determination: Appropriate data or a significant finding prove a specifically named error. These three levels are not replaced by a red traffic light.

The CFTC documented a problematic treatment of positive and negative slippage in the historical FXCM settlement in 2011. The case shows that rules and their actual application are investigable. He does not occupy a corresponding practice of every broker today. The procedural context remains arranged in the critical chronology.

Formulate a specific request

A useful enquiry identifies the account using a pseudonym, symbol, order or deal ticket, direction, quantity, event time and time zone, order type, actual price and the reference used. Ask a clear question: which quote and execution rule explain this event? For partial fills, also state the unfilled quantity.

Check the response and supporting documents together. Mark missing data as open, not replace it with presumption. The appropriate further path of complaint depends on the legal entity, contract and legal area. Documented Cases · Editorial standards →

Sources & scope

Check the evidence.

1. MetaTrader 5 · Platform Logs

   Manufacturer Help, 30.09.2026: Journal/Experts, local time in the journal and log files. No complete independent execution test by terminal data alone.

   Open the source ↗
2. CFTC · FXCM Order, 03.10.2011, 6119-11

   Authority findings compared to slippage treatment. Case-by-case, not transferred to all providers.

   Open the source ↗