Order Execution, Slippage and Why Your Fill Differs From Your Screen

The price on your screen is an invitation, not a guarantee. Between the moment you click and the moment an order is filled, the market continues to move and the platform performs several validation steps.

Where the delay comes from

1. Client-side rendering and network transit to the platform.
2. Risk and margin validation against your account.
3. Routing to a venue or internal book.
4. Matching and confirmation back to your client.

Slippage is not automatically a defect

Positive and negative slippage both occur in symmetric execution. Persistent one-directional slippage is the pattern worth investigating, and it is one of the reasons we look for published execution-quality statistics when reviewing any platform, including LW Management.

Execution models in plain terms

• Agency routing passes orders to external venues and typically charges commission.
• Principal or market-making models take the other side and typically earn the spread.
• Hybrid models switch based on order size, instrument or client segment.

Gaps, weekends and news events

Markets that close can reopen at a materially different price. A stop placed inside a gap fills at the first available price on the other side. This is the mechanical reason that stop-losses limit exposure without guaranteeing a maximum loss.

How to evaluate execution as a retail user

1. Log requested price versus fill price across many trades.
2. Separate results by session and volatility, not by outcome.
3. Compare like-for-like order types only.
4. Read the published order execution policy before drawing conclusions.

Related reading: how trading platforms work, and the full LW Management review.