IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/geo/guwopa/gueconwpa~19-19-02.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Front-Running and Collusion in Forex Trading

Author

Abstract

This paper examines the market-wide effects of front-running and information-sharing by dealers in a quantitative microstructure model of Forex trading. Recent investigations by government regulators and court proceedings reveal that there has been widespread sharing of information among Forex dealers working at major banks, as well as the regular front-running of large customer orders. I use the model to study the effects of unilateral front-running, where individual dealers trade ahead of their own customer orders; and collusive front-running where individual dealers trade ahead of another dealer's customer order based on information that was shared among a group of dealers. I find that both forms of front-running create an information externality that significantly affects order flows and Forex prices by slowing down the process through which inter-dealer trading aggregates information from across the market. Font-running reduces dealers' liquidity provision costs by raising the price customers pay to purchase Forex, and lowering the price they receive when selling Forex. These cost reductions are substantial; they lower costs by more than 90 percent. Front-running also affects other market participants that are not directly involved in front-running trades. The information externality makes these participants less willing to speculate on their private information when trading with dealers. This indirect effect of front-running can reduce participants' expected returns by as much as 10 percent. My analysis also shows that collusive front-running has larger effects on order flows than unilateral front-running because information-sharing reduces the risks dealers face when trading ahead of customer orders. However, in other respects, the effects of collusive and unilateral front-running are quite similar. Greater collusion lowers the costs of providing liquidity and it reduces other participants' expected returns, but the effects are small.

Suggested Citation

  • Martin D. D. Evans, 2019. "Front-Running and Collusion in Forex Trading," Working Papers gueconwpa~19-19-02, Georgetown University, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:geo:guwopa:gueconwpa~19-19-02
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/333485702_Front-Running_and_Collusion_in_Forex_Trading
    File Function: Full text
    Download Restriction: None
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Martin D.D. Evans & Richard K. Lyons, 2017. "Order Flow and Exchange Rate Dynamics," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: Studies in Foreign Exchange Economics, chapter 6, pages 247-290, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    2. Bjonnes, Geir Hoidal & Rime, Dagfinn, 2005. "Dealer behavior and trading systems in foreign exchange markets," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 75(3), pages 571-605, March.
    3. Alexander Schied & Torsten Schöneborn, 2009. "Risk aversion and the dynamics of optimal liquidation strategies in illiquid markets," Finance and Stochastics, Springer, vol. 13(2), pages 181-204, April.
    4. Jean-Charles Rochet & Jean-Luc Vila, 1994. "Insider Trading without Normality," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 61(1), pages 131-152.
    5. Philippe Bacchetta & Eric Van Wincoop, 2008. "Higher Order Expectations in Asset Pricing," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 40(5), pages 837-866, August.
    6. Kumar, Praveen & Seppi, Duane J, 1992. "Futures Manipulation with "Cash Settlement."," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 47(4), pages 1485-1502, September.
    7. Bessembinder, Hendrik & Carrion, Allen & Tuttle, Laura & Venkataraman, Kumar, 2016. "Liquidity, resiliency and market quality around predictable trades: Theory and evidence," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 121(1), pages 142-166.
    8. Melvin, Michael & Prins, John, 2015. "Equity hedging and exchange rates at the London 4p.m. fix," Journal of Financial Markets, Elsevier, vol. 22(C), pages 50-72.
    9. Vila, Jean-Luc, 1989. "Simple games of market manipulation," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 29(1), pages 21-26.
    10. Lyons, Richard K., 1995. "Tests of microstructural hypotheses in the foreign exchange market," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 39(2-3), pages 321-351.
    11. Evans, Martin D.D., 2018. "Forex trading and the WMR Fix," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 233-247.
    12. Bernhardt, Dan & Taub, Bart, 2008. "Front-running dynamics," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 138(1), pages 288-296, January.
    13. Admati, Anat R & Pfleiderer, Paul, 1991. "Sunshine Trading and Financial Market Equilibrium," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 4(3), pages 443-481.
    14. Hillion, Pierre & Suominen, Matti, 2004. "The manipulation of closing prices," Journal of Financial Markets, Elsevier, vol. 7(4), pages 351-375, October.
    15. Comerton-Forde, Carole & Putnins, Talis J., 2011. "Measuring closing price manipulation," Journal of Financial Intermediation, Elsevier, vol. 20(2), pages 135-158, April.
    16. Albert S. Kyle & S. Viswanathan, 2008. "How to Define Illegal Price Manipulation," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 98(2), pages 274-279, May.
    17. Cushing, David & Madhavan, Ananth, 2000. "Stock returns and trading at the close," Journal of Financial Markets, Elsevier, vol. 3(1), pages 45-67, February.
    18. Bruce Ian Carlin & Miguel Sousa Lobo & S. Viswanathan, 2007. "Episodic Liquidity Crises: Cooperative and Predatory Trading," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 62(5), pages 2235-2274, October.
    19. Takatoshi Ito & Masahiro Yamada, 2015. "Was the Forex Fixing Fixed?," NBER Working Papers 21518, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    20. Carol Osler & Alasdair Turnbull, 2016. "Dealer Trading at the Fix," Working Papers 101R, Brandeis University, Department of Economics and International Business School, revised Jun 2017.
    21. Oliver D. Hart, 1977. "On The Profitability of Speculation," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 91(4), pages 579-597.
    22. Lyons, Richard K., 1997. "A simultaneous trade model of the foreign exchange hot potato," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 42(3-4), pages 275-298, May.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Evans, Martin D.D., 2018. "Forex trading and the WMR Fix," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 233-247.
    2. Martin Evans, 2014. "Forex Trading and the WMR Fix," Working Papers gueconwpa~14-14-03, Georgetown University, Department of Economics.
    3. Carol Osler & Alasdair Turnbull, 2016. "Dealer Trading at the Fix," Working Papers 101R, Brandeis University, Department of Economics and International Business School, revised Jun 2017.
    4. Tālis J. Putniņš, 2012. "Market Manipulation: A Survey," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(5), pages 952-967, December.
    5. Medrano, Luis Angel & Vives, Xavier, 2001. "Strategic Behavior and Price Discovery," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 32(2), pages 221-248, Summer.
    6. Laurence Lescourret, 2017. "Cold Case File? Inventory Risk and Information Sharing during the pre†1997 NASDAQ," European Financial Management, European Financial Management Association, vol. 23(4), pages 761-806, September.
    7. Killeen, William P. & Lyons, Richard K. & Moore, Michael J., 2006. "Fixed versus flexible: Lessons from EMS order flow," Journal of International Money and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 25(4), pages 551-579, June.
    8. Banti, Chiara & Phylaktis, Kate & Sarno, Lucio, 2012. "Global liquidity risk in the foreign exchange market," Journal of International Money and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 31(2), pages 267-291.
    9. Martin D. D. Evans, 2017. "Order Flows and the Exchange Rate Disconnect Puzzle," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: Studies in Foreign Exchange Economics, chapter 15, pages 599-643, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    10. Osler, Carol L. & Mende, Alexander & Menkhoff, Lukas, 2011. "Price discovery in currency markets," Journal of International Money and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 30(8), pages 1696-1718.
    11. H. Henry Cao & Martin D. D. Evans & Richard K. Lyons, 2017. "Inventory Information," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: Studies in Foreign Exchange Economics, chapter 9, pages 363-413, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    12. Angelo Ranaldo & Paolo Santucci de Magistris, 2018. "Trading Volume, Illiquidity and Commonalities in FX Markets," Working Papers on Finance 1823, University of St. Gallen, School of Finance, revised Oct 2019.
    13. Breedon, Francis & Vitale, Paolo, 2010. "An empirical study of portfolio-balance and information effects of order flow on exchange rates," Journal of International Money and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 29(3), pages 504-524, April.
    14. Martin D. D. Evans(Georgetown University and NBER) and Richard K. Lyons(U.C. Berkeley and NBER, Haas School of Business), 2005. "A New Micro Model of Exchange Rate Dynamics (March 2004)," Working Papers gueconwpa~05-05-04, Georgetown University, Department of Economics.
    15. Cerrato, Mario & Sarantis, Nicholas & Saunders, Alex, 2011. "An investigation of customer order flow in the foreign exchange market," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 35(8), pages 1892-1906, August.
    16. Carole Comerton-Forde & Tālis J. Putniņš, 2014. "Stock Price Manipulation: Prevalence and Determinants," Review of Finance, European Finance Association, vol. 18(1), pages 23-66.
    17. Boyer, M. Martin & van Norden, Simon, 2006. "Exchange rates and order flow in the long run," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 3(4), pages 235-243, December.
    18. Ledenyov, Dimitri O. & Ledenyov, Viktor O., 2015. "Wave function method to forecast foreign currencies exchange rates at ultra high frequency electronic trading in foreign currencies exchange markets," MPRA Paper 67470, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    19. Ligon, James A. & Liu, Hao-Chen, 2013. "The relation of trade size and price contribution in a traditional foreign exchange brokered market," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 21(1), pages 1024-1045.
    20. Madhavan, Ananth, 2000. "Market microstructure: A survey," Journal of Financial Markets, Elsevier, vol. 3(3), pages 205-258, August.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Forex Trading; Order Flows; Forex Price Fixes; Microstructure Trading Models;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F3 - International Economics - - International Finance
    • F4 - International Economics - - Macroeconomic Aspects of International Trade and Finance
    • G1 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:geo:guwopa:gueconwpa~19-19-02. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Marcia Suss (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://econ.georgetown.edu/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.