Account currency versus profit currency, where the conversion cost hides

[Shadow Trader]

Two accounts can show the same pip result and still end up with different cash. Trading EURUSD on a USD account means profit arrives in the account currency directly. Trade the same pair on a EUR account and every pip is valued in USD, then converted to EUR at the broker's rate when the trade closes.

That conversion can carry a markup that never appears as a commission line, and it is applied on each closed trade. For a scalper doing dozens of fills a day, a tiny markup per conversion adds up in a way a single swing trade never would.

The comparison worth running is simple. Take ten recent closed trades, work out the profit in the quote currency by hand using the close price, convert at the mid-market rate for that minute, and compare against the figure the platform credited. The gap, if there is one, is the hidden cost. Many brokers convert at a rate very close to mid, so the gap may be negligible, though that is worth confirming instead of assuming.

Pairs matter too. If the account currency is one of the two in the pair, the conversion cost is smaller or zero. Some traders pick the account currency to match the pairs traded most.

Has anyone checked credited profit against a hand-converted figure and found a gap, and on which account currency?