Limit Order Books

Architecture

Limit order books represent a fundamental component of market microstructure, functioning as an electronic registry of buy and sell orders for a specific asset. These systems aggregate displayed liquidity, providing price discovery through the interaction of competing orders, and are central to efficient price formation in both centralized and decentralized exchanges. The depth of a limit order book, measured by the volume of orders at various price levels, directly influences market impact and the ease with which large trades can be executed. Modern implementations increasingly leverage sophisticated matching engines and order types to optimize execution speed and minimize adverse selection.