Actually how does the Lindex work?

When I'm buying Linden$ at a certain rate ... Then WHO actually is selling me the Linden$ ?

There is a list of buy and sell orders. I simply do not understand how that system works.

Let say, I place a Limit Buy Order - I wanna buy 100,000 L$ at a rate of 278; that is 359,71 USD, plus 0.30 USD fee.

Now, in the list of Sell Orders, the best rate is 266. This means that someone is willing to sell 100,000 L$, but he gets 376 USD for it.

This doesn't match! Do you understand what I mean? Who actually pays for the difference?

No match = no sale. You will not get your L$ until a seller comes along at your price, and the buyers "ahead" of you get their L$s. To be sure of getting your L$ now, you must place a Market order (at the going market rate) rather than a Limit order.

Well, I don't have the actual code, so this is just theoretical...

Simple case. A offers to buy 400L for $1US. B offers to sell 400L for $2. You are right, no match, so nothing happens.

The C comes along. C needs US$ *right now*, so he offers to sell 500L at any price. A gets 400L for $1. D offers to buy 200L at any price. He would get 100L from C at the current price, and 100L from B at $2. (Detail: What does "current" mean? For simplicity, it means the last price, but it could be more complicated than that. Different markets have different rules.)


Depending on the market, there might or might not be a small charge for the transaction.

Now, repeat this with hundreds of near simultaneous buys and sells, and you have a market. Throw in computerized trading, and you have a chaotic system with undamped positive feedback loops.