A market made of many exchanges
There is no single price. Every venue has its own book, its own participants and its own price, and the difference between them is not noise but a separate source of data.
4 lessons · 23 min
Who this course is for
For anyone trading on more than one exchange, or wanting to understand why the same move looks different in different places. After this course you know how to compare incomparable contracts, who usually moves first in your coin, what a divergence between venues means, and why a beautiful 17% spread usually yields nothing at all.
- 1There is no single price5 min'The price of bitcoin' is a convenient shorthand, not a fact. There is a price on every venue, and the difference between them says more than any one of them alone.
- 2Before you compare: units, currency, ticker6 minHalf of all 'arbitrage opportunities' exist only because something incomparable was compared. Before marvelling at a difference, bring both sides to the same form.
- 3Who leads a move and who catches up5 minIn every instrument there is a venue where price changes first and venues that repeat it. Which one leads depends on the coin, the hour of day and who is trading right now.
- 4Arbitrage: why a 17% spread usually yields nothing7 minThe difference between exchanges is visible and measurable. But between it and money stands a long list of deductions, and most often it eats everything — and eats the largest spreads whole.