crypto_trader/docs/user_manual/trading.md

Trading Guide

This guide explains how to trade cryptocurrencies using Crypto Trader.

Trading Modes

Paper Trading

Paper trading allows you to practice trading with virtual funds without risking real money.

• Default starting capital: $100 USD
• All trades are simulated
• Perfect for testing strategies
• No real money at risk

Live Trading

Live trading executes real orders on connected exchanges.

• Requires exchange API keys with trading permissions
• Real money is at risk
• Always test strategies in paper trading first
• Use risk management features

Autopilot Modes

The Autopilot feature provides autonomous trading signal generation with two distinct modes, each optimized for different use cases and user preferences.

Pattern-Based Autopilot

What it does: Detects technical chart patterns (Head & Shoulders, triangles, wedges, etc.) and combines them with sentiment analysis to generate trading signals.

How it works:

• Uses geometric pattern recognition to identify 40+ chart patterns
• Analyzes news headlines using FinBERT for market sentiment
• Generates signals when patterns align with sentiment
• Rule-based logic: Pattern + Sentiment Alignment = Signal

Best for:

• Users who want transparency and explainable decisions
• Users who understand technical analysis
• Users who prefer immediate setup without training data
• Users who want lightweight, fast execution

Key Features:

• ✅ Transparent and explainable - you can see exactly why each signal was generated
• ✅ No training data required - works immediately
• ✅ Fast and lightweight - minimal resource usage
• ✅ Pattern recognition for 40+ chart patterns
• ✅ Real-time sentiment analysis

Tradeoffs:

• ❌ Less adaptive to market changes (fixed rules)
• ❌ Requires both pattern and sentiment alignment for signals

ML-Based Autopilot

What it does: Uses machine learning to analyze market conditions and automatically select the best trading strategy from available strategies.

How it works:

• Analyzes current market conditions (volatility, trend, volume, etc.)
• Uses ML model trained on historical performance data
• Selects optimal strategy based on market regime
• Can auto-execute trades when confidence is high

Best for:

• Users who want adaptive, data-driven decisions
• Users who don't need to understand every decision
• Advanced users seeking performance optimization
• Users with sufficient historical data for training

Key Features:

• ✅ Adapts to market conditions automatically
• ✅ Learns from historical performance
• ✅ Optimizes strategy selection
• ✅ Market condition analysis
• ✅ Performance tracking and learning

Tradeoffs:

• ❌ Requires training data (needs historical trades)
• ❌ Less transparent (ML model decisions are less explainable)
• ❌ More complex setup (model training required)

Choosing the Right Autopilot Mode

Use this decision guide to select the appropriate mode:

Choose Pattern-Based if:

• You want to understand every trading decision
• You prefer transparent, explainable logic
• You want immediate setup without waiting for training data
• You understand technical analysis patterns
• You want lightweight, fast execution

Choose ML-Based if:

• You want adaptive, data-driven decisions
• You have sufficient historical trading data
• You want the system to learn and optimize automatically
• You don't need to understand every decision
• You want maximum performance optimization

Mode Comparison

Feature	Pattern-Based	ML-Based
Transparency	High - All decisions explainable	Low - ML model decisions less transparent
Adaptability	Low - Fixed rules	High - Learns and adapts
Setup Time	Immediate - No setup required	Requires training data collection
Resource Usage	Low - Lightweight	Medium - ML model overhead
Training Data	Not required	Required
Pattern Recognition	Yes (40+ patterns)	No (uses strategies)
Sentiment Analysis	Yes (FinBERT)	No
ML Strategy Selection	No	Yes
Auto-Execution	Configurable	Configurable

Auto-Execution

Both autopilot modes support auto-execution, which can be enabled independently of mode selection.

What is Auto-Execution?

• When enabled, the autopilot will automatically execute trades based on generated signals
• Trades are executed according to risk management rules
• You can monitor all auto-executed trades in the Trading page

Safety Considerations:

• ⚠️ Warning: Auto-execution will automatically execute trades with real money (if not in paper trading mode)
• Always test in paper trading mode first
• Set appropriate risk limits before enabling
• Monitor auto-executed trades regularly
• Start with small position sizes

How to Enable/Disable:

1. Go to the Dashboard page
2. Find the Autopilot Configuration section
3. Toggle the "Auto-Execute" switch
4. Confirm when prompted (first time only)

Monitoring Auto-Executed Trades:

• All auto-executed trades appear in the Trading page
• Check the Order History tab to review executed trades
• Monitor positions in the Positions tab
• Review autopilot status in the Dashboard

Switching Between Modes

You can switch between autopilot modes at any time:

1. Stop the current autopilot (if running)
2. Select the desired mode in the Autopilot Configuration section
3. Configure mode-specific settings
4. Start the autopilot in the new mode

Note: You cannot run both modes simultaneously for the same symbol. Stopping one mode before starting another is required.

Manual Trading Interface

The Trading page provides a comprehensive interface for manual order placement and management.

Accessing the Trading Page

1. Click on Trading in the navigation menu
2. The page displays:
   • Account balance and summary
   • Open positions (card view)
   • Active orders table
   • Order history table

Placing Orders

Market Orders

Market orders execute immediately at the current market price.

1. Click Place Order button
2. In the order dialog:
   • Select Exchange from dropdown
   • Select Symbol (e.g., BTC/USD)
   • Choose Side (Buy or Sell)
   • Select Order Type: Market
   • Enter Quantity
3. Click Place Order

The order will execute immediately. You'll see a success notification and the order will appear in the Active Orders table.

Limit Orders

Limit orders execute only when the price reaches your specified limit.

1. Click Place Order button
2. Select Order Type: Limit
3. Enter Price (required for limit orders)
4. Enter Quantity
5. Click Place Order

The order will appear in Active Orders and execute when the price reaches your limit.

Advanced Order Types

Stop Loss: Automatically sells if price drops below threshold

• Select "Stop Loss" order type
• Enter stop price
• Enter quantity

Take Profit: Automatically sells when profit target is reached

• Select "Take Profit" order type
• Enter target price
• Enter quantity

Trailing Stop: Adjusts stop price as price moves favorably

• Select "Trailing Stop" order type
• Enter initial stop price
• Enter quantity

OCO (One-Cancels-Other): Places two orders, one cancels the other when filled

• Select "OCO" order type
• Configure both orders in advanced options

Iceberg: Large order split into smaller visible orders

• Select "Iceberg" order type
• Configure in advanced options

Managing Positions

Viewing Positions

Positions can be viewed in two places:

1. Trading Page - Positions Tab:

   • Card-based view showing all open positions
   • Each card displays:
     • Symbol
     • Quantity
     • Entry price
     • Current price
     • Unrealized P&L (with percentage)
     • Realized P&L
     • Position value

2. Portfolio Page:

   • Detailed portfolio view with allocation charts
   • Same position cards with close functionality

Closing Positions

1. Navigate to Trading page and select Positions tab, or go to Portfolio page
2. Find the position card you want to close
3. Click Close Position button on the card
4. In the close dialog:
   • Choose order type (Market or Limit)
   • For limit orders, enter the limit price
5. Click Close Position to confirm

The position will be closed and removed from your open positions. You'll receive a notification when the order is filled.

Order Management

Viewing Orders

The Trading page has three tabs for order management:

1. Positions Tab: Shows all open positions with detailed P&L information
2. Active Orders Tab: Displays all pending, open, and partially filled orders
   • Shows order details: time, symbol, side, type, quantity, price, fill status
   • Real-time updates as orders are filled or canceled
3. Order History Tab: Shows completed, canceled, rejected, and expired orders
   • Includes filled quantity, average fill price, and fees
   • Limited to most recent 50 orders

Canceling Orders

1. Navigate to Trading page
2. Select Active Orders tab
3. Find the order you want to cancel
4. Click the Cancel button (red X icon) in the Actions column

The order will be canceled immediately and moved to Order History. You'll receive a notification confirming the cancellation.

Order Status Indicators

Orders are color-coded by status:

• Green (Filled): Successfully executed
• Yellow (Pending/Open/Partially Filled): Waiting to be filled
• Red (Cancelled/Rejected/Expired): Failed or canceled orders

Best Practices

1. Start with Paper Trading: Always test strategies first
2. Use Risk Management: Set stop-losses and position limits
3. Monitor Positions: Regularly check your open positions
4. Start Small: Begin with small position sizes
5. Keep Records: Review your trading history regularly

Fees

Trading fees are automatically calculated and deducted:

• Maker fees: Lower fees for limit orders that add liquidity
• Taker fees: Higher fees for market orders
• Fees vary by exchange

Paper Trading Fee Simulation

For paper trading, you can simulate different exchange fee structures:

1. Go to Settings → Paper Trading
2. Select Fee Model (Exchange) from the dropdown:
   • Default: 0.1% maker / 0.1% taker
   • Coinbase: 0.4% maker / 0.6% taker
   • Kraken: 0.16% maker / 0.26% taker
   • Binance: 0.1% maker / 0.1% taker
3. Click Save Settings

The current fee rates display shows:

• Maker fee rate
• Taker fee rate
• Estimated round-trip cost (buy + sell)

This helps you understand how fees impact your trading strategy profitability before going live.

Troubleshooting

Order not executing?

• Check exchange connection
• Verify API permissions
• Check account balance
• Review order parameters

Position not showing?

• Refresh the portfolio view
• Check database connection
• Review application logs