Some Kraken futures limit orders can still fill after a successful cancel

Certain limit orders on Kraken futures may still execute even after a successful cancellation request, provided the cancellation is received during the Maker Protection hold window. Kraken broadened this system on Oct. 8, extending the order-handling rule to additional contracts.

Following the announcement of 61 extra perpetual contracts, Kraken finalized Phase 2. Maker Protection is active on specific futures markets, with documentation outlining an initial 20-millisecond hold.

What a Kraken futures cancellation changes

Maker Protection pauses orders capable of taking liquidity before they hit the matching engine, granting participants with resting orders an opportunity to respond. Any limit order lacking a post-only instruction is held on an applicable market, even if it normally would have rested on the order book.

Submitting a cancellation within that window alters the outcome of the order. Kraken transforms the held placement into an immediate-or-cancel order, allowing it to trade upon release while preventing any unfilled remainder from resting on the book. The original expiration time of the hold remains unchanged.

Consider a scenario where a trader places a non-post-only limit order and cancels it prior to the hold expiration. The cancellation request bypasses the delay and converts the held placement into immediate-or-cancel status. At the scheduled release time, it can still execute trades, though any remaining unfilled volume is dropped.

Kraken logs these actions individually. The cancellation registers as successful with the order status listed as “cancelled,” while the order subsequently generates its own execution reports or failure notices. For a converted limit order that fails to trade, the REST v3 response returns iocWouldNotExecute.

The instruments feed on Kraken specifies the configured hold for each market via makerProtectionMillis. According to documentation, a missing or zero value indicates that no delay has been set.

Because coverage varies by contract, traders cannot assume protection based solely on the coin name. Kraken notes that its ten most liquid linear perpetual markets are excluded, and spot trading remains unaffected. Standalone post-only submissions bypass the hold entirely. While cancellation requests also skip the delay, a held limit placement continues to wait for its original release timestamp.

Alternative held order categories yield different cancellation responses. Attempting to cancel a held immediate-or-cancel, fill-or-kill, or market placement returns an ORDER_NOT_FOUND error, and the original request still reaches the matching engine upon release.

Algorithmic traders utilizing Kraken futures must account for both the execution response of the order and the cancellation confirmation. A successful cancellation of a held limit order can still occur alongside a subsequent fill.

?Frequently Asked Questions

01What is Kraken’s Maker Protection hold window?

Maker Protection is a mechanism that holds certain orders for an initial duration (such as 20 milliseconds) before they reach the matching engine, giving resting order participants time to react.

02Can a cancelled Kraken futures limit order still fill?

Yes. If a cancellation request arrives during the Maker Protection hold window, Kraken converts the held placement to immediate-or-cancel. It can still execute when released, though any unfilled remainder is discarded.

03Are all Kraken markets subject to Maker Protection?

No. Maker Protection applies only to selected futures markets, and Kraken’s ten most liquid linear perpetual markets are excluded. Spot trading is unaffected, and standalone post-only placements bypass the hold.