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I'm considering setting up an automated account to trade a medium term diversified futures trend following system. Any recommendations on which broker to use? I don't know how to code so I may purchase a simple MA crossover or Donchian type breakout system. However, I want the broker through the system to do all the trading. Are any of you doing this? If so, which broker are you using and what has your experience been in terms of the broker entering and exiting every trade with no mistakes?
trust me, don't do that. if you really want to run this road, learn to code, start by 0, will be long and tough, if there is nobody that will make you see something good, it will probably cause you to lost some money. I would suggest to start trading discretionary on sim and then if you want to run the automated road, try to code it yourself, it will take a couple of years 12/15 hours a day weekend included to get something merely profitable if you are lucky and good.
Or just invest your money in something safe
Or to answer your question, tradestation is one of the many
I appreciate your answer but perhaps you can provide more details on your reasoning. I'm not talking about some over-optimized system with a dozen indicators, I'm considering some simple robust systems (as mentioned in the original post) with volatility adjusted position sizing and ATR stops. I understand how trend following systems work and that I'll experience hefty drawdowns possibly over 2-3 years. It's just not clear to me why I have to learn to code. In fact, I know a guy that is constantly coding systems and he jumps from one to another and my guess is he's never made any money. I don't want to be that guy.
Having a simply strategy coded connected to a good broker is easy, but asking the broker to monitor and follow the system is much more difficult. That will have a cost and it's a lot of responsability on the broker's side: what if there is a bug in the strategy, in the trading platform itself, a problem with the data/order feed, ..., and if you lose a ton of money?
The easier would be to code (or ask someone to code for you) your idea and configure it to send you an email after each trade and a status of your positions every hour.
That should not be extremely expensive, the responsability of any technical issue will be yours and nobody else, and you'll be able to react not too slowly if someting looks wrong.
I had a client who was running systems for people, he was monitoring people's strategies, but that was a gentlemen agreement and not very legal.
Sorry I've been too hurry to answer you and I realized that after done.
Well what I meant is that if you don't know how to code you can't run an automated strategy unless you have someone who do all the it/code stuff for you. I think it's not all about how robust your strategy is, problems will eventually occur and then you need someone to understand if the problem is in your strategy, your code, your provider, your broker or elsewhere.
Other than this, I tryed to warn you that even what sounds good and look good might eventually result not profitable. You said you can manage 2/3 years drawdown, well I bet nobody can or if you expect or are ready for such event maybe is worth thinking to something different to manage your funds.
I started running automated trading strategies a couple of years ago, I've been lucky to have seen and run strategies where some people worked for years so I've been profitable from day 1. Then I took the good of them, started learning to code and develope my own with my own ideas. I understood that one or two are not enough but you need a very diversified portfolio, so if one stop working others are making money. It's really very time consuming process.
But as I said I use tradestation, it is quite reliable, most of the times. I don't know if the strategies you want to use can run on it, so you should check with who sell them to you who may also advice which broker is best to run them.
A system has to be perfectly automated for a specific platform.
You run it for two weeks or longer with a broker of choice and see you guys are getting the same signals for entry, exit and/or risk management. as @sam028 suggested, broker could not be responsible for error that occur with code or platform. Arrangements as such are done on best efforts basis.
I suggested that you rent a server from Sam and run your method on a platform, get familiarized with it, and when errors occur you can resort to your broker for help or fix it yourself.
Matt
There is s substantial risk of loss in futures trading. Past performance is not indicative of future results
Trading futures and options involves substantial risk of loss and is not suitable for all investors. Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. You may lose more than your initial investment. All posts are opinions and do not claim to be facts. Please conduct your own due diligence. Use only Risk capital when trading Futures.
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The easy part is to buy the robust trading system if your that well financed and I have seen them for sale for up to $3 million dollars. The code needs also needs handle all the caveat's that arise while running live with real money ,such as how it reacts when you get disconnected from a server, will it reconnect? what does it do during news events when the spread is crazy wide and when the market going nuts 100 points up and down. Those are just a few things if that you will need to have addressed in a Automated strategy.
In my opinion and I just tell it like it is.
If you want to be a Automated trader you will have to learn to code or you will go broke paying folks to code stuff for you. Unless your that well funded to buy a Robust Automated system like a lot of hedge funds do... there are places that make them for you and run them for you but its not cheap.
Striker securities in Chicago is where you will find what you are looking for.
Amp runs several of the same strategies from the same developers also.
They keep an updated list of their top performers and the performance reports.
This is as close as you will get to what you want.
As you browse through the different developers work, you will see which ones stand out and fit your particular needs.
There are several programs with a solid track record that are reasonably priced.
Tradestation will require more work and management on your part to get something up and running and to keep it running.