Introduction
Requotes (from the English term "requote") are one of those situations that traders encounter in financial markets, whether it’s Forex, the stock market, or cryptocurrency exchanges. This term refers to the moment when a broker, upon receiving a request to execute a trade, cannot fulfill it at the initially quoted price and offers a new one. For many market participants, requotes become a source of frustration, as they disrupt plans, increase uncertainty, and can affect the overall profitability of trading.
Imagine this: you spot the perfect entry point in the market, press the "Buy" or "Sell" button, but instead of instant execution, you receive a notification that the price has changed. Now, you must either agree to the new terms or abandon the trade altogether. That’s a requote. While such situations don’t happen every day, they are particularly noticeable during periods of high market activity, such as after the release of significant economic news or during sharp price movements.
Why are requotes so important to traders? The answer is simple: they directly impact the speed and accuracy of executing trading decisions. In conditions where every second can cost money, any deviation from the plan can lead to financial losses or missed opportunities. However, requotes shouldn’t be viewed solely as a problem — in some cases, they are a natural consequence of market processes and can be used as a signal to analyze the current situation.
In this article, we’ll dive deep into what requotes are, how they occur, what factors influence them, and how traders can adapt to these phenomena. You’ll learn how to minimize their frequency, what tools and approaches can help mitigate their effects, and how to turn a potential problem into part of your trading strategy. We’ll also explore the role of brokers in this process and provide practical tips based on real traders’ experiences. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced market participant, understanding the nature of requotes will help you make more informed decisions and confidently move toward your financial goals.
What Are Requotes?
Requotes are a broker’s re-offer of a price in response to a trader’s request to execute a trade. When you place an order to buy or sell an asset, you expect it to be executed at the price displayed on your screen. However, in reality, the price can change in a fraction of a second before the broker processes your request. In such cases, instead of automatic execution, you receive a notification with a new price and a choice: accept it or decline.
This process is especially common in markets with high volatility, where asset prices change rapidly. For example, imagine you’re trading the EUR/USD currency pair. You see a price of 1.0850 and decide to open a buy position. By the time your request reaches the broker’s server, the price has risen to 1.0855. The broker sends you a requote with an offer to execute the trade at the new price. Now, you need to quickly decide whether to agree or wait it out.
Requotes aren’t always tied to errors or broker dishonesty. Often, they simply reflect real market dynamics. However, their frequency and impact depend on numerous factors: from the broker’s technical infrastructure to your own trading habits. To better understand the nature of requotes, let’s break down their key characteristics.
Main Characteristics of Requotes:
- Reason for Occurrence: A change in the market price before the order reaches the execution stage. This can be triggered by external factors (news, large trades) or internal ones (processing delays).
- Consequences: Increased time to execute a trade, altered market entry conditions, or a complete loss of a trading opportunity. For scalpers, for instance, this can be a critical issue, as their strategy relies on speed.
- Frequency: Depends on the broker type, the chosen instrument, and current market conditions. Requotes are rare in calm markets, but their likelihood spikes during events like U.S. unemployment data releases or interest rate decisions.
- Market Types: Requotes are more common in Forex and low-liquidity markets than in major stock exchanges with automated execution.
It’s worth noting that requotes aren’t always a negative phenomenon. Sometimes, the new price might even be more favorable than the original, especially if the market moves in your favor. However, in most cases, traders perceive them as a hindrance, as they disrupt pre-calculated plans and introduce uncertainty. Understanding how and why requotes occur is the first step toward learning to work with them.
Let’s consider a practical example. Suppose you’re trading gold (XAU/USD) and notice a sharp price surge after news of a Federal Reserve interest rate cut. You place a buy order at $1950 per ounce, but due to a flood of orders, the price jumps to $1952 within a second. The broker returns a requote with the new price. In this situation, you have two options: accept the new price and enter the market or decline and wait for the next opportunity. This example illustrates how a rapidly changing market environment affects the trading process.
Causes of Requotes
Requotes don’t appear out of nowhere — they have specific causes tied to both external market factors and the internal workings of a broker or your trading system. Understanding these causes allows traders not only to predict the likelihood of requotes but also to take steps to prevent them. Let’s break down the main factors that lead to this situation in detail.
1. High Volatility
The market is a living organism that reacts to numerous events: from central bank statements to geopolitical crises. During periods of high volatility, such as after U.S. GDP data releases or European Central Bank decisions, prices can shift by dozens of pips in seconds. In such moments, a broker simply can’t execute your order at the original price because it’s already outdated. This is the most common cause of requotes, especially for those trading during news releases.
Example: In March 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic began, markets experienced unprecedented fluctuations. The price of WTI oil crashed to negative values, and currency pairs like USD/JPY saw jumps of dozens of pips in minutes. Traders attempting to open positions at that time faced widespread requotes, as brokers couldn’t guarantee execution at the quoted prices.
Volatility is an inherent part of the market, and avoiding it entirely is impossible. However, traders can use an economic calendar to prepare for such events in advance and adjust their strategies accordingly.
2. Order Execution Delays
The technical side of trading plays a huge role. If you have a slow internet connection, an outdated computer, or a broker with low-performance servers, the time between sending an order and its processing increases. In those fractions of a second, the price can move far from what you saw on your screen. Such delays are especially noticeable with brokers using outdated infrastructure or traders operating over mobile networks with poor signals.
Imagine this scenario: You’re trading from a laptop in a café with unstable Wi-Fi. You send a sell order for GBP/USD at 1.3000, but due to a 500-millisecond delay, the price drops to 1.2995. The broker returns a requote because it can’t execute the trade at the outdated price. This is a classic example of how technical issues impact trading.
3. Order Execution Type
Not all brokers operate the same way. There are two main order execution models: Dealing Desk (DD) and Non-Dealing Desk (NDD). DD brokers, also known as "market makers," process your orders themselves and act as counterparties to your trades. This means they might artificially delay execution or offer requotes if the price moves against their interests. In contrast, NDD brokers (STP or ECN) route orders directly to the interbank market, reducing the likelihood of requotes.
For instance, if you’re working with a DD broker and try to open a large 10-lot position on EUR/USD, the broker might not want to take on that risk and offer you a requote with a less favorable price. With an NDD broker, this conflict of interest typically doesn’t exist, as they’re merely an intermediary between you and the market.
4. Lack of Liquidity
Liquidity is the market’s ability to absorb orders without significant price changes. In low-liquidity markets (e.g., exotic currency pairs like USD/TRY or stocks of small companies), the number of buyers and sellers is limited. If you place an order to buy or sell and there isn’t enough volume at the current price, the broker is forced to offer you a new price, resulting in a requote.
Example: You’re trading USD/ZAR (U.S. dollar/South African rand) at night when market activity is minimal. Your 5-lot buy order at 15.5000 can’t be fully executed due to a lack of sellers, and the broker offers you 15.5050. This is a typical scenario for instruments with low liquidity.
5. Human Factor
Although modern trading platforms are mostly automated, human intervention still plays a role in some cases. With brokers that manually process orders (especially on smaller platforms), staff might not keep up with market changes, increasing the chances of requotes. This is rare in 2025 but still occurs with some local brokers.
How Requotes Affect Trading?
Requotes aren’t just a minor technical detail — they’re a factor that can significantly impact your trading. Their consequences affect not only financial outcomes but also a trader’s psychological state and the overall effectiveness of a strategy. To understand how to minimize their impact, it’s crucial to first recognize which aspects of trading they influence. Let’s break it down step by step.
1. Missed Opportunities
One of the most obvious effects of requotes is the loss of trading opportunities. Imagine you’re trading on a 5-minute chart and spot a clear entry signal based on a moving average crossover strategy. You place a buy order for AUD/USD at 0.6750, but due to a sudden market move, the broker offers you 0.6760. If the new price exceeds your risk zone, you decline the trade, and the market moves up without you. In the end, you miss out on a potential 30-40 pip profit.
For scalpers and day traders, whose profits depend on numerous small trades, these moments are especially painful. A single missed entry can derail an entire day’s trading plan. Moreover, if you’re trading on news, where opportunity windows last mere seconds, requotes can render such a strategy nearly impossible.
2. Reduced Profits
Even if you accept the new price, it’s often less favorable than what you originally planned. This directly impacts your profitability. For example, you open a sell trade on USD/JPY at 145.00, aiming for a 50-pip profit. However, due to a requote, the trade executes at 145.10. Now, your potential profit shrinks to 40 pips, and your risk-to-reward ratio worsens. If these situations pile up over a month, your overall results could fall well below expectations.
This is especially noticeable when trading large volumes. Suppose you’re working with 5 lots on EUR/USD. A 2-pip price shift due to a requote means a $100 loss on a single trade. For long-term investors, this might be trivial, but for active traders, these losses quickly add up to a significant amount.
3. Psychological Pressure
Trading isn’t just about numbers — it’s also about emotions. Frequent requotes can throw even an experienced trader off balance. Picture this: you encounter price changes several times in a row — first missing a trade, then losing part of your profit, and later taking a loss due to a bad entry. This breeds irritation, self-doubt about your strategy, and a desire to "recoup losses," often leading to impulsive decisions and further losses.
Example: Trader Ivan is trading cryptocurrencies and tries to catch Bitcoin’s movement after U.S. inflation data is released. He places a buy order at $65,000 but gets a requote at $65,200. Declining the trade, he watches the price soar to $66,000. Frustration pushes him into an impulsive entry at a higher price, resulting in a loss when the market pulls back. Such emotional rollercoasters are a direct consequence of requotes.
4. Increased Execution Time
Requotes slow down the trading process, which is critical for strategies reliant on speed. For instance, if you’re using high-frequency trading (HFT) or scalping, where trades last seconds, even an extra millisecond can be problematic. A requote forces you to spend time analyzing the new price and deciding, during which the market might move far from your entry point.
In volatile markets like Forex during the U.S. session or cryptocurrencies during hype periods, this is especially evident. For example, in December 2024, when Bitcoin hit a new all-time high, traders reported widespread requotes due to an influx of orders. Those who couldn’t adapt quickly lost time and money.
How to Avoid Requotes?
Requotes are one of those inevitable realities of trading that even experienced market participants face. Completely eliminating them is impossible, as they depend on numerous factors: from market volatility to the technical specifics of the trading platform. Nevertheless, you can significantly reduce their frequency and minimize their impact on your results by employing the right approaches and tools. Below are strategies to help you manage this issue and maintain control over your trades.
1. Choosing a Reliable Broker
The quality of your broker is the foundation of your trading success. How quickly and accurately a company executes orders determines how often you’ll encounter requotes. Opt for brokers with a proven reputation, offering transparent conditions and minimal delays. For example, brokers with ECN accounts (Electronic Communication Network) provide direct access to the interbank market, where orders are executed faster and with a lower chance of requotes, even during periods of high volatility.
To find a suitable broker, start by analyzing reviews on independent forums like Forex Factory or Myfxbook. Study ratings compiled by analytical agencies and be sure to test the platform on a demo account. Pay attention to details such as average order execution time and slippage frequency — these are often published in account specifications. For instance, if a broker indicates an execution time of under 100 milliseconds, that’s a good sign.
Another key point is spreads and commissions. Some brokers lure clients with "zero spreads" and no additional fees, but this can be a trap. Such conditions often hide frequent requotes or artificial spread widening during market activity. Real trading conditions, verified by independent tests, always outweigh promotional promises. For example, a broker with a fixed $5 per lot commission and tight spreads starting at 0.1 pips may be more reliable than one promising "everything for free."
Real-world example: Trader Alexey switched from a Dealing Desk broker to an ECN platform before the U.S. inflation data release in March 2025. As a result, he reduced requotes from 10 to 2 per session, preserving profits on USD/JPY trades.
2. Using Pending Orders
Pending orders are a powerful tool to shield against requotes, especially if you trade based on technical analysis. Orders like Buy Limit, Sell Limit, Buy Stop, and Sell Stop let you pre-set an exact price at which a trade should execute. When the market hits that level, the order triggers automatically, bypassing the risk of price changes at the moment of request submission.
This is particularly useful for strategies based on support and resistance levels or breakouts. For instance, if you see EUR/USD approaching strong support at 1.2000, you can place a Buy Limit at that level. Even if the market moves rapidly, your order will execute at the pre-selected price, eliminating the need to manually confirm a new price.
Example: Trader Anna trades gold (XAU/USD) and uses pending orders to target key levels. She sets a Sell Limit at $2000, anticipating a reversal after a price surge. When the market hits that mark during the Asian session, her trade opens without delay, despite a volatility spike from gold mining news. She locks in a 50-pip profit, avoiding a requote that could have shifted the price to $2002.
However, keep in mind that pending orders aren’t a cure-all. During extreme volatility (e.g., after U.S. GDP data releases), even they can execute with slippage. To minimize this risk, set a reasonable distance from the current price and check your platform’s maximum deviation settings (e.g., the "Deviation" parameter in MetaTrader).
3. Improving Your Internet Connection
The speed and stability of your internet connection are your first line of defense against technical requotes. Any delay between sending an order and its processing on the broker’s server increases the likelihood of a price change. If you trade from home, ditch Wi-Fi for a wired Ethernet connection — it reduces latency and eliminates interference from neighboring networks.
For mobile trading, opt for high-bandwidth networks like 5G or use hotspots with a reliable signal. For example, traders in major cities in 2025 are increasingly switching to 5G connections, which offer pings under 10 milliseconds. If you’re traveling or working with unstable connectivity, avoid trading during high-volatility moments — the risk of requotes rises with delays.
A more advanced option is renting a VPS (Virtual Private Server). Hosted in data centers near your broker’s servers (e.g., in London, New York, or Tokyo), a VPS cuts data transmission time to 1-2 milliseconds. This is especially relevant for scalpers and high-frequency traders. VPS rental costs start at $10-15 per month, making it accessible even for beginners. For instance, trader Sergey from Moscow rented a VPS before the April 2025 NFP data release, reducing delays from 200 to 5 milliseconds and eliminating technical requotes entirely.
Quick test: Before a trading session, check your ping to the broker’s server via the command line (using the "ping" command). If it exceeds 50 milliseconds, consider upgrading your connection.
4. Reducing Trading During News
Economic news is a primary driver of volatility in financial markets. Releases like Non-Farm Payrolls (NFP), central bank interest rate decisions, oil inventory reports, or speeches by Fed and ECB heads can trigger sharp price jumps, making requotes nearly unavoidable. To protect yourself, try to avoid active trading during these times.
Use an economic calendar (e.g., from Investing.com or ForexLive) to plan your actions in advance. Mark high-impact events (typically indicated by three stars or red color) and refrain from opening new positions 5-10 minutes before and after the release. If trading during news is unavoidable, reduce trade volume (e.g., from 1 lot to 0.1 lot) and widen the acceptable slippage range in your terminal settings.
Example: In February 2025, trader Olga decided to trade during the Eurozone inflation data release. She opened a buy position on EUR/USD a minute before the release, but a price surge from 1.0850 to 1.0870 triggered a requote. The trade didn’t execute, and she missed a 40-pip move. Afterward, Olga began closing all positions 15 minutes before news, cutting her requote encounters to a minimum.
Alternative approach: Trade after the news. Wait for the market to digest the information and volatility to subside, then enter on pullbacks or breakouts of new levels.
5. Choosing the Right Trading Time
Timing is another factor affecting requote likelihood. The market is most liquid during overlaps of major trading sessions, like the European and American sessions (3:00 PM to 6:00 PM Kyiv time). During these hours, major currency pairs like EUR/USD, GBP/USD, and USD/JPY exhibit tight spreads and high activity, reducing the risk of price changes before order execution.
Avoid trading during late-night hours (12:00 AM to 6:00 AM Kyiv time) when the Asian session operates alone and liquidity drops. Also, be cautious during holidays like Christmas or U.S. Thanksgiving, when major players exit the market and spreads widen. For example, in December 2024, Forex traders working on New Year’s Eve faced widespread requotes due to low activity.
Example: Trader Mykhailo shifted from night to day sessions after analyzing his trades. He noticed 80% of requotes occurred between 2:00 AM and 4:00 AM Kyiv time while trading USD/CHF. Switching to 4:00 PM to 7:00 PM reduced their frequency by 70% and boosted his average profit per trade.
Tip: Study the session schedules for your instruments. If you trade commodities like oil or gold, check CME or COMEX operating hours to align your activity with peak periods.
The Broker’s Role in Requotes
A broker isn’t just an intermediary but a key player in your trading ecosystem. Their technology, business model, and liquidity providers determine how often you’ll face requotes and how severely they’ll impact your results. Different brokers use different order execution approaches, and understanding these mechanisms will help you choose a partner that minimizes such issues.
1. Execution Model
There are two main broker types: Dealing Desk (DD) and Non-Dealing Desk (NDD). DD brokers, or "market makers," process your orders internally and often act as counterparties to your trades. This means their profit may depend on your losses, creating a potential conflict of interest. During sharp market moves, these brokers might deliberately offer requotes to protect their positions or avoid payouts on your winning trades.
In contrast, NDD brokers (STP or ECN) route your orders directly to the market or liquidity providers without interference. STP (Straight Through Processing) sends trades to liquidity aggregators, while ECN (Electronic Communication Network) connects you to the interbank market, where you trade directly with other participants. In these models, requotes are less likely, as the broker has no incentive to manipulate prices.
Example: You’re trading with a DD broker and open a 3-lot position on USD/CAD during Canada’s GDP data release. The market spikes upward, and the broker offers a requote 10 pips worse to avoid losses on their side. With an ECN broker, your order would execute at the market price without extra delays, as it would go straight to the liquidity provider.
How to choose? Check the account type on the broker’s website. ECN accounts typically feature floating spreads from 0 pips and a per-lot commission, while DD accounts offer fixed spreads and "commission-free" trading — a sign of potential requotes.
2. Liquidity Quality
Liquidity is the market’s ability to absorb orders without sharp price shifts. Brokers partnered with major institutional liquidity providers like Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Citi, or Barclays offer a deeper order pool. This means even large trades execute without significant price movements, lowering requote chances.
Smaller brokers or those with limited liquidity access often face issues. For instance, if a broker works with just one provider or an internal pool, it may struggle with order influxes during volatility. You’ll get a requote because the desired price simply isn’t available.
To assess liquidity quality, request details about the broker’s partners or check independent reviews. In 2025, top ECN brokers publish market depth statistics (Market Depth), showing available volumes at different price levels. If your broker offers this feature in the terminal, it’s a sign of high quality.
Example: Trader Viktor compared two brokers during an Fed rate announcement. The first (with access to three major banks) saw EUR/USD spreads widen from 0.2 to 1 pip without requotes. The second (with one provider) saw spreads jump to 5 pips, and a 2-lot order got a requote. The choice was clear.
3. Regulation
Regulated brokers adhere to strict standards set by bodies like the FCA (UK), ASIC (Australia), CFTC (USA), or CySEC (Cyprus). These organizations demand transparency in order execution, client fund protection, and fair pricing policies. Regulators also ensure brokers don’t use requotes as a manipulation tool, reducing their frequency.
Unregulated brokers, often registered in offshore zones like St. Vincent and the Grenadines, have more freedom. They might artificially delay orders or offer unfavorable prices, especially if they see a trader consistently profiting. In 2024, traders widely complained about an offshore broker issuing requotes on 90% of orders during Europe’s PMI data release.
Tip: Verify a broker’s license on the regulator’s website (e.g., fca.org.uk/register for FCA). Also, confirm if the regulation applies to your region — some firms have limited licenses.
4. Technical Infrastructure
Modern brokers invest millions in servers located near major financial hubs like London, New York, Tokyo, or Frankfurt. This cuts order processing time to fractions of a millisecond. For example, servers in Equinix NY4 (New York) provide pings under 1 ms for U.S. traders, virtually eliminating technical requotes.
Brokers with outdated infrastructure, however, rely on low-performance servers, increasing delays. If your order is processed 5,000 km from the exchange, even a perfect internet connection won’t prevent requotes. In 2025, top firms offer "zero latency" technology using cloud solutions and direct fiber-optic lines.
Example: Trader Olena noticed her GBP/USD orders with one broker lagged by 300 ms, while another executed in 50 ms. Switching to a broker with London servers cut her requotes from 15 to 3 per month, boosting profits by 12%.
How to check? Ask support where their servers are located and if they use co-location with exchanges. Also, test execution speed on a demo account in real conditions.
How to Cope with Requotes?
Even with all precautions, requotes sometimes occur. Instead of viewing them as a disaster, learn to adapt and turn them to your advantage. Staying calm and having a clear action plan is key. Here are practical steps to keep you in the game and minimize losses.
1. Accepting the New Price
If a broker offers a new price, don’t rush to decline. Assess whether it fits your strategy and acceptable risk level. Predefine a tolerable deviation range — say, 2-3 pips for Forex or $0.50 for stocks. If the new price still allows you to hit your profit target, accept it.
This is especially useful for positional traders, where small price shifts aren’t critical. For example, you plan to buy Apple stock at $150, aiming to sell at $160. A requote offers $150.20 — a 20-cent difference is negligible for a long-term trade with a $10 profit. By accepting it, you stay in the market and stick to your plan.
Tip: Set up automatic requote acceptance within a specified range in your terminal (e.g., via "Maximum Deviation" in MetaTrader). This speeds up the process and avoids emotional swings.
2. Waiting for the Right Moment
If the new price is too far from your plan, decline the trade and wait. Markets often return to key levels after sharp moves, especially during news-driven volatility. Patience can turn a potential loss into a profitable entry. For instance, after an Fed rate data release, EUR/USD might jump from 1.0900 to 1.0920 but pull back to 1.0905 within 10-15 minutes, letting you enter on better terms.
Example: Trader Ihor got a requote to buy Bitcoin at $70,000 instead of $69,800 during a hype in April 2025. He declined and waited for consolidation at $69,900, saving $100 on the trade and catching a move to $71,000.
For this approach, use indicators like Fibonacci levels or moving averages to pinpoint return points. The key is avoiding FOMO (fear of missing out) and sticking to your plan.
3. Analyzing Market Conditions
Requotes often signal heightened volatility or low liquidity. Use this as a cue to analyze the market. Monitor news via Bloomberg or Reuters and check the economic calendar to understand what’s happening. Technical indicators like ATR (Average True Range) help gauge current movement amplitude and predict requote risks.
For example, if ATR on USD/JPY’s daily chart rises from 50 to 150 pips in a day, it’s a sign of impending turbulence. In such conditions, reduce volumes or switch to less volatile pairs like EUR/GBP. Analysis also reveals patterns: if requotes cluster at certain times or on specific instruments, adjust your schedule.
Example: Trader Daria noticed USD/TRY requotes in 90% of cases from 8:00 PM to 10:00 PM Kyiv time. After analyzing, she linked it to Turkish bank closures. Stopping trading during those hours cut her requote frequency by 85%.
4. Using Automated Systems
Trading robots and advisors eliminate the human factor and speed up requote responses. Algorithms can be set to auto-accept new prices within limits or reject trades if the deviation is too large. This is especially handy for scalpers and high-frequency traders, where speed is everything.
For instance, you can code an MQL4/MQL5 script for MetaTrader to accept requotes only if the new price is within 2 pips of the original. Alternatively, use platforms like TradingView with auto-trading via a broker’s API. In 2025, such solutions are growing popular thanks to AI and cloud tech advancements.
Example: Trader Roman set up a robot for GBP/USD trading. The algorithm accepted requotes up to 3 pips and rejected anything beyond. In a month, he cut losses from bad entries by 20% and raised profitable trades from 60% to 75%.
Caution: Automation needs testing. Run algorithms on historical data and demo accounts to avoid real-trade errors.
Conclusion
Requotes are an integral part of trading, especially in dynamic, volatile markets like Forex, cryptocurrencies, or commodities. They can frustrate, cut profits, and derail plans, but with the right approach, their impact can be minimized. Understanding their causes — from market spikes to technical delays — empowers you not just to react but to manage the situation.
Choosing a reputable broker with modern infrastructure is the first step to reducing requotes. Pending orders let you pre-control entry prices, while better internet and smart timing minimize technical risks. When requotes strike, adaptability — accepting new prices, waiting for pullbacks, or using algorithms — turns a problem into part of your strategy.
Trading is as much psychology as technique. Frequent requotes can shake confidence, but discipline and emotional resilience keep you on track. Each requote is a lesson: it teaches you to analyze the market more closely, understand its mechanics better, and make more deliberate decisions. Ultimately, a successful trader isn’t one who avoids challenges but one who overcomes them.
Use this article’s insights as a guide to action. Experiment with the suggested methods, tailor them to your trading style, and track your results. The market constantly evolves, and your ability to learn and adapt is what will lead to consistent profits. Let every trade, even with a requote, be a step toward your financial goals!
