Where does the revenue come from?

Trading noob here so bare with me.

Do sales and trading departments at BBs make their money from:

a) executing transactions for clients and taking a percentage (e.g. client asks to buy stock A, S&T buy for price X and charge them X + a few bips)

b) client asks S&T to buy stock A, S&T quote him price X (includes risk), and S&T tries to get it for a lower price, keeping (or absorbing) the difference

c) combination of the two

d) neither of the two

Thanks

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3 Comments
 

I'm sure there are many roads to Rome, but this is the most common one I've seen: A) Client says; Buy 10k AA @ 14.95 high. After the order is executed, lets say 14.93, add som points (vary if you're trading through ie. Goldman Sachs' platform Reddi or Fidessa) and the client gets their order. Also a fee (lets say 0.5% for some clients) is added.

CNBC sucks "This financial crisis is worse than a divorce. I've lost all my money, but the wife is still here." - Client after getting blown up
 

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I don't accept sacrifices and I don't make them. ... If ever the pleasure of one has to be bought by the pain of the other, there better be no trade at all. A trade by which one gains and the other loses is a fraud.

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