Lesson 5.1 - Quote Anomaly Investigation

“The Price Is Moving, But Is It Real?”

At 14:06, XAUUSD jumps sharply for one tick. Other reference sources do not show the same move, one quote-source quote is far away from the rest, and several client stops trigger.

• Investigate suspicious quote movements systematically.
• Distinguish market volatility from quote anomalies.
• Build evidence before recommending corrective action.

Abnormal Price / Spike → Check Scope

Scope → Compare Independent Sources

Sources → Check Quote Sources / Timestamps

Quote → Check Quote Processing / Filter Logs

Engine → Identify Affected Orders

Orders → Market Move / Bad Tick / Stale Quote / Internal Issue

Classify → Escalate With Evidence

Classification	Typical Characteristics
Genuine market move	Seen across multiple independent sources
Bad tick	One isolated, invalid or extreme quote
Stale-price recovery	Price was frozen then catches up
Internal quote issue	Quote processing, filter or mapping error

Collect symbol/time, platform tick sequence, quote-source bid/ask and timestamps, market-reference comparison, quote-processing logs, affected order list, and post-event quote status.

On-Shift Investigation Steps

A quote-anomaly review should not start with the question of compensation or blame. It should start with verified facts:

1. Confirm the affected symbol, server time and duration.
2. Save MT4 / MT5 client terminal screenshots, using more than one account or platform view if useful.
3. Compare Bid / Ask, spread, tick sequence and quote-source timestamps.
4. Check Bridge logs for affected orders, platform-rule rejects, timeouts or abnormal queue behavior.
5. Define the impact scope: one account, one group, one symbol or multiple products/clients.
6. Escalate neutrally: record confirmed facts without admitting a pricing error or dismissing the client prematurely.

Common Quote Issues and Evidence

Issue	Meaning	Evidence Focus
Price spike / bad tick	A sudden chart needle that quickly returns to normal range	Tick time, chart screenshot, Bid / Ask, affected orders
Off-market price	A quote visibly deviates from other sources or reasonable market range	Quote-source comparison, reference market, spread, timestamp
Stale-price recovery	A price stops updating briefly and then catches up	Last update time, recovery time, orders during the gap
Quote-source divergence	High/low differences between quote sources widen abnormally	Quote contribution, spread, quote-source status
Chart/order dispute	Client-visible chart and trigger/fill record need reconciliation	Client terminal screenshot, order ID, server time, Bridge log

Isolated XAUUSD Spike

• Quote Source C publishes a bid far below all other quote sources.
• The aggregator accepts it for one tick.
• Several sell stops are triggered.
• Quote Source A/Quote Source B/Quote Source D do not show the move.
• The next valid tick returns to normal range.

A sharp price move appears on one quote source only and is absent from other reliable sources. What is the best next step?

Quote incidents require evidence, comparison and disciplined classification. A sharp tick alone is not enough to determine what happened.

Practical Exercise

Real Scenario

XAUUSD prints a long needle at 14:06 and several clients report stop-loss triggers.

Evidence a Dealer Should Review

Tick sequence, Bid / Ask, quote-source prices, client terminal screenshot, reference market, trigger price, Bridge log and affected order IDs.

Incorrect Example

Immediately tell the client the price was wrong, or reject the complaint before verifying the quote sources.

Correct Handling

Save evidence, compare sources, define the impact scope and escalate for authorized review.

Completion Criteria

• Can explain the key risk or operational objective of this lesson
• Can identify the required systems, data, or evidence to review
• Can describe the correct escalation or handling process
• Has completed Shift Leader / follow-up review or practical confirmation