Futures trading stack (who does what between you and the exchange)
The futures trading stack is the chain of separate parties behind one trade: the charting and trading software, the market data and routing vendor, the broker or prop firm, the futures commission merchant, the clearing house and the exchange. Each owns a different part of what can go wrong, and each bills separately for its part.
Senzoukria · Glossary · Updated September 2026
The layers
| Layer | Examples of its role | What it can fix |
|---|---|---|
| Trading and charting software | Display, order tickets, analysis | Display, configuration, software faults |
| Data and routing vendor | Market data feed, order routing API | Connectivity, API access, feed faults |
| Broker or prop firm | Account, rules, support | Account permissions, data subscriptions |
| Futures commission merchant | Funds, margin, risk checks, statements | Margin, risk limits, trade corrections |
| Clearing house | Guarantee, daily settlement | Nothing a trader contacts directly |
| Exchange | Matching, market data, rules | Market events, trade busts |
Worked example: one refused login, three possible owners
A connection is refused at login. The cause can sit in at least three layers: the vendor does not know the system name entered, the broker has not enabled the account for third-party API access, or the account lacks the data subscription. Changing software settings fixes none of the second and third. A diagnostic that separates the steps (gateway, system, route, authentication, subscription, first tick) points to the layer that has to act.
Who bills what
- Software licence: the application vendor.
- Market data: the exchange's fees, collected by the data vendor or broker.
- Commissions and fees per contract: broker, FCM, exchange and clearing house, often combined on one statement.
- Evaluation or account fees: the prop firm, where one is involved.
In Senzoukria
Senzoukria is the first layer only. Its pricing covers the application; data from Rithmic, Databento or any other provider is billed by that provider, and live trading uses your own broker account. For Rithmic connections, the connection diagnostic walks the chain one step at a time and ends, when everything was accepted but no data arrives, with the question to send to the broker: is my login enabled for third-party API access, for which data, and under which system name?
Common mistakes
- Asking the software vendor to fix an entitlement only the broker can grant.
- Comparing platforms on licence price while ignoring the data and fee lines.
- Assuming the prop firm, the broker and the data vendor are one company.
Related
In the same section
- Direct market access
- Non-professional status
- Gambler's fallacy
- Futures symbology
- Gamma
- Month codes
- Gamma exposure
- Futures contract
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Frequently asked questions
- Why do I pay for data separately from the software?
- Because the exchange charges for its data and the vendor or broker collects that fee, while the software vendor sells the application. The two are different products from different companies, even when they are sold together.
- Who should I contact when my data does not arrive?
- Start from where the chain stops. If the login is refused or the subscription rejected, the broker or data vendor has to act; if the data arrives but displays wrongly, the software vendor is the right contact.