How an OTC deal is put together
It starts with a conversation, not a form: you describe the amount, the direction and the timeframe, and the desk answers with a proposed structure β pricing basis, execution steps, and what documentation each step produces. Nothing moves on-chain until the structure is agreed in writing in the request chat.
Execution is deliberately stepped for large amounts: coins are transferred in agreed portions, each portion confirmed before the next one leaves. Slower than a single transfer, and that is the point β a mistake or a dispute at scale is contained to one step instead of the whole amount.
- The price is individually quoted and fixed per step, not taken from a retail quote screen.
- Each portion of the deal has its own transaction hash and its own entry in the request history.
- Agreements are written in the request chat β the record of the deal is the chat itself.
Questions about source of funds
For large incoming amounts, expect more questions about origin β which wallet the funds come from and how they were accumulated. This is the AML side of size: the bigger the amount, the more attention its history attracts, and a service that skips these questions at scale is a risk to you, not a convenience.
Answering them is about the blockchain history of your coins, not your passport. Links to the public transactions and a plain-language explanation of the origin are usually enough; questions are asked in the chat, in your language, before the structure is agreed.
Pricing and fees at scale
Large quotes are built differently from retail ones: the spread is negotiated per deal rather than taken from a tariff, and it usually improves with volume β while the fee floor stops mattering as much. The desk names the full price including all components; there is no separate "large deal surcharge" appearing later.
Slippage is the honest reason large amounts are stepped: converting a big position in one motion moves the price against you. Splitting the execution trades a little time for a materially better average β the same logic institutional desks use, applied to a chat-first service.
Related reading
What the cost of an exchange actually consists of
The number an exchange shows you is a sandwich of several distinct costs. Once you can name each layer, quotes stop being mysterious and "hidden fees" become easy to spot β on this service or any other.
Evidence that wins a dispute: hash, quote, chat
Most disputes in crypto exchange are not about opinions β they are about facts that were recorded all along: on the chain, in the request, in the chat. This guide is about collecting those facts while things are calm, so they exist when things are not.
Frequently asked questions
From which amount is a deal considered OTC?
The threshold is not a hard public number β it depends on the direction and current conditions. The practical rule: if the retail quote screen makes you think about slippage, raise the question in the bot and the desk will tell you whether your case fits the OTC flow.
How long does a large deal take?
It depends on the agreed structure: the number of steps, the fiat side's schedule and banking hours. The timeline is part of the written agreement in the request chat before execution starts β it is not discovered along the way.
Is the OTC record usable if a dispute arises?
Yes: the written structure in the chat, the hashes of each portion and the payout receipts together form a complete reconstruction of the deal. The dispute-evidence guide on this site describes what to keep in general.