Some traders think that ECN brokers are the way to go because they provide lower spreads than other types of brokers. But actually, not all ECN brokers offer 'pure' spread rates. It is not that they will mark up market spread, but they may be working with tier-2 aggregators or any other liquidity providers that stand on the farther end of the chain and offer less competitive rates. Comparatively, raw spread forex brokers seek to provide the best quotes by establishing relations with the deepest liquidity pools. There's also an element of marketing when certain brokers choose to label themselves as 'ECN brokers'. Usually, the ads are accompanied with exaggerated claims such as 'spread as low as zero' or 'spread starting from 0.1' and so on. Traders then regret signing up with them, because actual spreads are far higher.