Sunset
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
^^^^^^^^^^ Looking good. Hope it all works well for you.
Well it’s been a PITA transitioning my algo trading bots to use multiple brokerage platforms (had too because the first brokerage platform - TD Ameritrade - couldn’t “handle” the volume of trades) but v1 is finally complete.
These algo bots (which mostly just scalp individual tickers within the S&P 500) have performed thousands of full automated trades and the account has grown from an initial account size of $25,000 (to be eligible for the pattern day trader SEC rule) and it’s now just over $150,00 (with no margin/leverage) and it has only run fully autonomously for a couple of months (with some tweaking here and there and some significant down time). All those patents I did (working for multiple Fortune 500 companies in non financial sectors) are now personally starting to pay off for me personally besides just have plaques on the wall [emoji16]
One thing to note is that most of the results and videos you’ll get while searching Google/YouTube on “how to day trade” or “best technical indicators for scalping” is all a bunch of [emoji90]. In addition to my algorithms, I fully and programmatically backtested nearly every technical indicator/strategy found on Google/YouTube and most of them do not work unless they are significantly adapted in dealing with various intraday market conditions (up, down, and/or sideways). BTW - tight stop losses are a game changer (when done programmatically and not via a preset value). My next version will
Incorporate TQQQ and SQQQ - they are both triple leveraged ETF’s and are solid strategies if unsure which way the market is going to turn (e.g. in a sideways market). Backtesting a decade worth of those still but results look very promising.
YMMW
Just my normal curiosity, but I have to ask: (you don't have to answer.) Do you do this w*rk because you need to make more money for your Early Retirement or do you do it more for "fun?" I guess I ask because it seems like a LOT of w*rk and while you seem very confident, there must be significant risk. I could sort of see it as recreation - sorta like playing poker. Otherwise, it just seems like playing against the house. Play long enough and you'll lose (no offense intended.) YMMV
- It’s definitely more of a hobby because I have more than I need financially to live very comfortably for the rest of my life.
- I do it because I enjoy working with and applying technology.
- 99% of my NW is in long term investments (equities) and real estate,
- I take no offensive in that you think algorithmic day trading is “risky”. While I would be 100% okay with losing every penny in this account, I’m not stupid and I have mitigated risk on multiple levels… My algo bots have extremely tight stop losses (e.g. pennies per share so the risk per trade is extremely low) and on average they are only in a trade for a few seconds or perhaps minutes at most and they only trade while the market is open…. Another major factor in reducing “risk”, my bots can/do trade hundreds of individual stocks/ETF’s simultaneously. If a black swan event happened during the open market and while my bots were actively trading and I happen to lose everything, this account is only a tiny fraction of my NW and I wouldn’t lose a single night’s sleep.
- Some people during retirement like to golf, sleep, eat, travel, binge watch TV, etc. I do some of those things in moderation but I also get a lot of enjoyment building technology and keeping my skills I’ve gained over the past 25+ years somewhat sharp whenever possible.
- People on this forum wanted me to keep posting and providing updates. From here on out I’ll just send updates to those of you who DM me as I know the audience for this type of thing is minimal.
You cannot beat the computers, they are faster and smarter.
- It’s definitely more of a hobby because I have more than I need financially to live very comfortably for the rest of my life.
- I do it because I enjoy working with and applying technology.
- 99% of my NW is in long term investments (equities) and real estate,
- I take no offensive in that you think algorithmic day trading is “risky”. While I would be 100% okay with losing every penny in this account, I’m not stupid and I have mitigated risk on multiple levels… My algo bots have extremely tight stop losses (e.g. pennies per share so the risk per trade is extremely low) and on average they are only in a trade for a few seconds or perhaps minutes at most and they only trade while the market is open…. Another major factor in reducing “risk”, my bots can/do trade hundreds of individual stocks/ETF’s simultaneously. If a black swan event happened during the open market and while my bots were actively trading and I happen to lose everything, this account is only a tiny fraction of my NW and I wouldn’t lose a single night’s sleep.
- Some people during retirement like to golf, sleep, eat, travel, binge watch TV, etc. I do some of those things in moderation but I also get a lot of enjoyment building technology and keeping my skills I’ve gained over the past 25+ years somewhat sharp whenever possible.
- People on this forum wanted me to keep posting and providing updates. From here on out I’ll just send updates to those of you who DM me as I know the audience for this type of thing is minimal.
Any Update? Based on the growth curve you should be approaching $1M now.
Did you truly "crack the code"?
Does the algorithm scale with the higher dollar volumes?
Does the new broker handle the higher volumes well?
Any unforseen risks?
How has it handled the volatility of the past months?
Did you start a hedge fund? Sell the program to a hedge fund?
Taking clients?
Enquiring minds want to know.
Here's a quick update:
1) My initial account ($25,000) grew to about $375,000 (as of a few months ago) but I ended up splitting that account across multiple brokerage platforms (long story there)
2) I haven't aggregated all of my accounts (across multiple brokerages) but I know they collectively are north of $500,000. ...
5) Regarding hedge fund, ...
Here's a quick update:
1) My initial account ($25,000) grew to about $375,000 (as of a few months ago) but I ended up splitting that account across multiple brokerage platforms (long story there)
5) Regarding hedge fund, I personally don't want the headache of starting one because I am FI and this is mostly a hobby and for a way to keep my technical skills sharp. I have had numerous family members and friends that want me to invest their money but there's some grey legal issues there and honestly I want to make sure this thing is rock solid using my own money.
6) I do get a lot of satisfaction watching my algos trade all day long.
7) Have I cracked the code? Well, obviously things are working amazing but I've been a software engineer for nearly 30 years and led a research team for about 10 of those years so I know that it's too early to celebrate.
8) As far as taking on clients, I would have to register and become a broker/dealer and again - not sure I want the headache but if I could find someone who would oversee/manage things I might consider it.
9) I have considered pursuing another patent - but again, I don't want this to feel like a full-time job and sometimes I've put in many more hours than I (or my wife) would like
Also - please tell the moderators to bring back the mobile app! I haven't been on forum in months (until I received an email on this thread).
I'm with ERD50. I'd take half off the table and put in something safe to protect your total stash. I think gamblers call it "rat holing" some money when their winning. That way, when they go home, they still have money - no matter what happens later in the game. Anyway, congrats on your process. I hope it continues to fund your early retirement. Aloha