Electronic communications network

electronic communications network (ECN)

A computerized trading network that matches buy and sell orders entered electronically by customers. Orders that cannot be immediately matched are posted for viewing by investors who may wish to take an offsetting position. Instinet became the first ECN when it started business in 1969. Archipelago and Island are two other large electronic communications networks. One study indicated that in January 2001 ECNs handled over 50% of all Nasdaq transactions.

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Electronic communications network (ECN). An ECN is an alternative securities trading system that collects, displays, and executes orders electronically without a middleman, such as a specialist or market maker.

Trading on an ECN allows institutional and individual investors to buy and sell anonymously. Further, ECNs facilitate extended, or after-hours, trading.

ECN trade execution can be faster and less expensive than trades handled through screen-based or traditional markets, though the volume is sometimes thin.

However, some ECNs have been approved for official stock exchange status, expanding the number of stocks that can be traded on their systems.