Iceberg Order

Category: business

A large conditional limit order split into smaller visible amounts to hide the true structural volume from the public order book.

Institutions use iceberg orders to avoid moving the market price against themselves. A computer script submits a massive order but only displays a fraction (the "tip") on the public order book layer. As soon as the visible portion is filled, the script automatically generates the next matching segment from the hidden reserve.

Common Examples

• Our micro-structure scanner detected a massive iceberg order absorbing all available sell pressure at the fifty-dollar support floor.
• An unmasked iceberg order can trigger front-running algorithms, causing liquidity providers to pull their bids and worsen execution slippage.