Why did my market order get executed as a Limit order?

This occurs when you place market orders on the BSE or certain illiquid stocks on the NSE.

Because the bid-ask spread in many stocks is very wide, when you place a market order, the execution may occur far away from the last traded price. As a result, the exchanges have enabled market price protection of a certain percentage of the price on such select illiquid scrips in NSE (& all stocks in BSE) to reduce risk.

This means that if you place a market order, it will be executed as a limit order, with the trigger at LTP and the price at x% of LTP. Within x% of the LTP, your order will be executed at the next best available bid/offer. The exchange determines the market price protection percentage.

For Ex: Suppose you want to buy DENABANK shares with an LTP of Rs 12. If you place a market order, a limit order with 3% market protection will be placed, implying that your order will be executed at the next best offer within Rs 12.36.