THE BEECHMONT CREST ONLINE GUIDE TO STOCKS AND INVESTING
ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION NETWORKS (ECNs)
Have you ever bought stock through E*Trade or Ameritrade? After you placed your online order, the online brokerage likely filled your order through an ECN.
An ECN is an online, electronic market for over-the-counter (OTC) stocks. As an individual investor, you won’t likely deal with an ECN. You will instead place your order with an online brokerage house-- which will then acquire your shares for you through one of these electronic “stock wholesalers.”