A broker who doesn’t route orders of retail traders to an electronic communication network (ECN). This type of broker executes orders in a synthetically created market. By operating as a dealing desk, dealing-desk brokers don’t only facilitate trading, but also take part in it by dealing trades to retail traders and taking the other side of the transaction. For example, when a client goes long a currency pair, the broker goes short, and vice versa. The trading environment created by dealing desks replicates actual FOREX markets. In this sense, dealing desk brokers are FOREX market makers.

The dealing desk broker is also referred to as a non-ECN broker.