Quasimorph Economy Guide: Stock Exchange, Bartering & Trade

Quasimorph has no gold coins. The Magnum is an illegal PMC, so you're cut off from the system-wide trading network — the economy runs on items, reputation, and barter points, all mediated by the Stock Exchange screen that doubles as your mission board. Understanding supply-and-demand pricing, the sub-zero reputation break, and the reworked Trade Shuttle is how you turn successful extracts into permanent progression instead of a full cargo hold of junk.

Here's what you'll learn:

• The three-layer economy: items, faction credit, and Dignitas
• How the Stock Exchange works as mission board + commodities market
• Supply-and-demand pricing and why station tooltips matter
• Bartering basics and the reputation rules that can wipe your points
• The Trade Shuttle rework: three modes in 1.0
• Profit strategies: flipping goods, farming factions, and the 50,000 Dignitas achievement

Official resources: Steam store page · Official Quasimorph Wiki — Bartering · Official Quasimorph Wiki — Factions · Official 1.0 patch notes — Trade Shuttle · IGN game page

The Three-Layer Economy

There is no universal currency. Three separate values matter, and mixing them up is the fastest way to lose progress:

1. Items — the real currency. Missions pay in items, and stations accept specific item categories to produce goods. The wiki's Bartering page summarizes: "Different stations require different goods. As soon as we bring them and unload them into the station warehouse, the current holders of the station owners will be happy to exchange with us. The conditions are extortionate, but it's worth it."
2. Faction credit — earned by completing missions for a faction and selling it goods. Reward value beyond items converts to credit with that faction only. Spend it at their stations on produced items and tech-list gear.
3. Dignitas — the system's abstract market value tracked by the "Stonks" achievement (Earn 50,000 Dignitas through barter). It's your long-term barter volume meter, not a wallet you spend directly.

The Stock Exchange: Mission Board + Commodities Market

The Stock Exchange is the Magnum's central commerce screen. It hosts:

• Contract cards — beneficiary, victim, travel time, floors, station type, difficulty, and reward.
• Faction trade panels — what each docked station wants, sells, and the price dynamics.
• Supply-and-demand pricing — the game runs on the law of supply and demand (official wiki): stations use accepted items to produce goods, then sell them to other stations. Goods a station needs sell high there; surplus goods are dumped at a discount.

Because prices shift as faction Power and Technology grow (see the factions guide), treat the Exchange like a commodities screen, not a catalog. The community YouTube guides recommend: check which station produces the item you need (the list ranks producers), then fly there only with good reputation to get the 25% friend discount — at 14 reputation you pay 61% extra, effectively doubling the price.

Bartering Rules (and the Sub-Zero Break)

• Barter points accumulate through deals with a faction; they're spent in the barter tab. Factions don't always trade at market price — some items have fixed values.
• Accepted goods change over time and vary by station; hover the station tooltip (improved in patch 1.0.1) to see what's accepted and what sells at reduced price.
• Direct credit purchases unlock in the second tab once your reputation with the faction is high enough — community testing places the unlock around 25–30 reputation, so don't expect credit-only shopping early.
• THE hard rule: if your reputation with a faction drops below zero, all accumulated barter points with that faction are cleared, and the purchase tab locks until you repair standing. The wiki calls it a trade break; the campaign walkthrough warns that story routes can trip it mid-arc.

The Trade Shuttle (1.0 Rework)

Version 1.0 reworked the shuttle into a remote trading tool with three modes:

1. Typed barter — specify the types of desired items to purchase remotely.
2. Sell for reputation — sell surplus goods to raise reputation without flying there. This is the recovery tool after a near-sub-zero scare.
3. Cargo transport — move goods from proxy-company stations.

The catch: the shuttle now sells any item, but items the station doesn't require sell at a reduced price — so selling junk remotely is convenient but inefficient. The Hangar upgrades that matter here (Bill of Lading +50 shipment value, Warehouse Network +100, Route Beacons/Improved Electronics/Navigation AI for delivery time) are covered in the Magnum upgrades guide.

Profit Strategies

• Buy at 100-rep friends, sell to whoever needs it. The classic flip: purchase cheap at a friendly producer station, then sell where demand (and price) is high. Prices roughly double as the campaign progresses, so holding rare goods (data miners, memory records, gold) is a legitimate strategy.
• Farm specific stations. Civil Resistance stations offer ore and gold — some of the hardest-to-loot materials — as first-tier rewards. If you need those, generate missions at their stations (Monitoring) rather than fighting for random drops.
• Protect your producer stations. If a station gets hit by Robbery missions or espionage, its stock collapses — "protect the stations that produce items you need" is the community's trading advice. Defense contracts for your trade partners are economy plays.
• Fast Trading toggle. Compresses confirm steps for bulk buys/sells — but it also speeds up mistakes. Keep it off for story-flagged items (Phase Bomb components, rite materials) and on for post-Mars farming liquidation.
• The Stonks grind. Earn 50,000 Dignitas through barter (0.1% unlock rate) is the economy achievement; the fastest path is high-volume bulk trading of cheap, widely-accepted goods once your reputation network is deep. See the achievements guide.

Per the official 1.0 patch notes: "Trade Shuttle rework. It now sells any item, but items that are not required are sold at a reduced price. Three trading modes: barter with the ability to specify the type of desired items to purchase, selling items to increase reputation, and cargo transportation from proxy company stations."

Frequently Asked Questions

How does the economy work in Quasimorph?

There's no universal currency: missions pay in items, surplus converts to faction credit, and barter points accrue from deals. The Stock Exchange screen hosts both the mission board and faction trade panels with supply-and-demand prices.

How do I make money in Quasimorph?

By "money" players mean progression: complete contracts for items and credit, barter surplus at stations that want it, buy cheap at high-reputation stations and sell where demand is high, and use the Trade Shuttle for remote sales and reputation repair.

What is the Stock Exchange in Quasimorph?

The Magnum's combined mission board and commodities market: contract cards, faction trade panels, price dynamics, and — at high reputation — direct credit purchases.

How does bartering work in Quasimorph?

Stations accept specific item categories (which change over time) and exchange them at supply-and-demand prices. Faction reputation is a price multiplier (25% discount at 100, +50% markup at low standing), and direct credit purchases unlock around 25–30 reputation.

What happens if my reputation goes below zero?

All accumulated barter points with that faction are cleared and purchase tabs lock until you repair standing. It's a hard trade break — plan contracts so you never dip a faction you trade with below zero.

Related Guides

• Quasimorph Magnum Upgrades Guide — Base & Ship Priority
• Quasimorph Factions Guide — All Factions & Standing
• Quasimorph Campaign Walkthrough — All Storylines & 9 Endings
• Quasimorph Extraction Guide — How to Extract Alive
• Quasimorph Achievements Guide — All 82 Unlocks
• Quasimorph 1.0 Update — What's New in the Full Release

Last updated: August 14, 2026.