Building RFQs
Published on Jun 30, 2022Updated on Apr 4, 20247 min read13
How do I add multiple legs when creating an RFQ?
The first leg can be added by clicking the "custom strategy" button and selecting one or more instruments from the menu that opens up by clicking "B" for "Buy" or "S" for "Sell" next to the instrument and indicating the quantity. Alternatively, the first leg can be added by clicking on one of the icons in the "Pre-Defined Strategies" section. Some of these are one leg and some are two. Once the first one or more legs are chosen, additional legs can be added either from the Position Builder by clicking the "Add Leg" button underneath the last leg, by clicking on the content under the "Product" column (bringing up the instrument selection menu), or by adding additional pre-defined strategies from the "pre-defined" section by clicking one of the icons.
How do I make my RFQ anonymous?
Beneath the last leg you've added in the position builder, there is a toggle for "Anonymous" when the light-blue is visible, your RFQ will be broadcast as anonymous, meaning your identifier will not be visible to any counterparties at any point during the life of your RFQ and trade. Your information will still be visible to OKX and our support team.
Who can I select as a counterparty? How do I select them?
Under the last leg of your strategy there is some text that reads "Select Counterparties". Clicking here opens up the menu with all available counterparties. Who you select here determines which Makers are able to see and submit quotes on your RFQ.
By default, all available counterparties are selected. Clicking the checkbox next to each name will select or unselect a given counterparty.
How do I edit a leg that I've already added while building an RFQ?
There are two ways to do this. The first is to click on the field you wish to edit directly on that leg in the position builder. This opens a menu for fields that take on specific values (expiry date or strike price), a text input for numerical values (quantity), or a button to flip values that can only take binary input (buy vs sell, put vs call, USDT vs Coin margined).
The other is to either click on the value in the "product" column" or click "add leg" below the final leg of your strategy. Either of these will open up the product selection menu, where you can navigate to any product in your strategy and amend the leg in the same place where you found it originally.
How do I use the risk analysis?
The risk analysis on the first page shows a chart graphing the expected profit or loss on one currency risk-unit in your strategy on the y-axis against spectrum of the potential price of the underlying currency of that leg. What this means is that when the price of the underlying currency is at a particular level, you can find where the graphed line is at this x-coordinate to determine if your strategy would be profitable (above the x-axis) or in a loss (below the x-axis). Two lines will be visible, one represents the profit or loss at the expiry date, the other represents the profit or loss at some date during the life of the contract(s). This date can be changed using the sliding bar above the chart.
Clicking into the Margin pop-out opens up tables for each of the currency underlying in your strategy. The tables will show you the required margin for the strategy along with risk metrics referred to as "the greeks" for more information on these, please check out the article on our academy.
How do I update the candlestick chart?
There are two ways to update the candlestick chart:
- Click on the candlestick icon to the right of any leg in your strategy
- Use the drop-down menu above the chart
Where can I find descriptions for each of the pre-defined strategies?
Each of the predefined strategies offered on Block Trading by OKX are explained in our academy under the "Trading" topic.
How to I submit an RFQ for a target price, for instance 100,000 USDT worth of BTC, rather than a defined amount of coins?
After selecting a product and bringing it into the position builder, clicking the arrow in the box where you input the quantity allows you to instead indicate a target price. This feature is only available for spot pairs.
How do I change the type of an option from "call" to "put" or vice versa on the builder?
Clicking the button reading "call" or "put" on an option leg will flip this value to its opposite.
How do I change the type of a future or perpetual from "coin margined" to "USDT margined" or vice versa on the builder?
Clicking the button reading "Coin" or "USDT" on a future or perpetual leg will flip this value to its opposite, provided the selected instrument has a corresponding Coin or USDT future or perp listed on OKX.
What does the "Est. Value" refer to?
To assist you in understanding each leg in your strategy, the "Est. Value" is provided displaying the hypothetical notional value of this leg using current order book data. The true notional after execution may differ depending on the Maker's quote that you select.
What does the "Combo price" refer to?
Combo price is the sum of the prices of all legs based on current order book data. This value is again indicative and is only intended as a reference to assist you in selecting the best available Marker quote. For strategies involving multiple base currencies (for instance, a BTC/USDT spot leg plus an ETH/USD option leg, or ADA/BTC spot plus a BTC/USD futures contract), the combo price will be displayed in USD equivalent. This is only to provide a meaningful price in a common currency, the trade will be settled in the base currency of each leg.
How do I add an instrument to my favorites in the instrument selections menu?
Clicking the star icon next to a currency pair in the currency selection section of the product menu will instantly add that pair to your favorites. OTC Block Trading only supports saving currency pairs as favorites, not individual instruments.
How do I add a counterparty to my favorites?
Clicking the star icon next to a counterparty's ticker in the counterparty selection section of the product menu will instantly add that pair to your favorites.
I indicated 15 counterparties for my strategy and now I can't add any more. Why is this?
The maximum number of counterparties you can designate is capped at 15. If you need to broadcast to any more, please submit additional RFQs
What do the tabs int eh pre-defined strategies section mean?
These sections sort pre-defined strategies based on the intended objective of the strategy. These objectives include taking a bullish view, that the price of the underlying will rise, a bearish view that the price of the underlying will fall, a neutral view that the price will remain steady, and a volatile view that the price of the underlying fill fluctuate significantly.
How many legs can I put into my strategy?
Block trading strategies are capped at 15 legs.
What is the minimum block size? How is it determined?
An RFQ must have an absolute notional value of at least US$50,000 equivalent value. For instance, this can take the form of long one leg of US$20,000 and short one leg of US$30,000 equivalent value. The US$ amount will be calculated using current order book data.
I selected counterparties, created my RFQ, and now my counterparties have vanished. What happened?
The various makers on Block Trading by OKX have the ability to designate which products and currencies they are able to provide quotes for. Should your RFQ contain instruments that are not those that a selected counterparty is willing to quote, their name will be removed from your selection. If you are having trouble finding a counterparty for a multi-leg RFQ, you may consider splitting your trade into more than one request.