Money Printer - Automated Trading

In the world of financial markets, the ability to discern macroeconomic trends and identify prime opportunities is a skill coveted by traders and investors. My start into the realm of automated trading has been a fascinating exploration of these abilities, where I harnessed the potential of cutting-edge tools to navigate the ever-evolving landscape.

A Prelude: Gekko

My introduction to the world of automated trading came through a tool called Gekko, hosted on GitHub. Gekko offered a lightweight platform to dip my toes into algorithmic trading. While it provided a solid foundation, it left me yearning for additional features and capabilities.

Despite its limitations, Gekko served as my stepping stone into the world of automated trading. It was here that I began to understand the power of data-driven decision-making and the potential to capitalize on market opportunities.

The Main Act: FreqTrade

Enter FreqTrade, a robust and versatile tool for algorithmic trading also hosted on GitHub. FreqTrade marked a significant upgrade, offering a comprehensive suite of features.

One notable advantage of FreqTrade was its ability to operate within a Docker container, streamlining the deployment and management of my trading strategies. This level of efficiency was very nice and provided some nice info on Docker and relevant tools.

Interacting with APIs

It’s important to note that all of these trading softwares use API with authentication to interact with an exchange of your choice. It was nice to see how these connections are made and how they can interact directly with an exchange to view, read, and execute actions.

The Money Printer

With FreqTrade now configured, I started to create my trading bot, which I affectionately named the “Money Printer.” The name was more aspirational than literal, but as events would unfold, it seemed increasingly fitting. I started to quickly figure out, that most succesful strategies were not in public domain. While FreqTrade and Gekko both had public examples of different strategies, the most succesful strategies are the ones you can’t find anywhere. With help from the community, it allowed me to make my own.

2020-2021 was a great time for the Money Printer. It was during this era that the bot truly demonstrated its capabilities. The cryptocurrency markets were experiencing a bull run of epic proportions, and the Money Printer was running at a perfect time to capitalize on it.

Unprecedented Success

The Money Printer’s performance was nothing short of remarkable. It executed trades with precision and speed, often yielding returns of over 30% in a single day. The bot had evolved into a formidable trading companion, leveraging a multitude of parameters and indicators to navigate the volatile cryptocurrency landscape.

Telegram: Tracking Progress and Manual Intervention

One of the most satisfying aspects of my automated trading journey was the integration with Telegram. I set up a Telegram channel where the Money Printer would provide real-time updates on its progress, track trades, and even allow for manual intervention when necessary.

This interaction between the bot and the Telegram channel became an invaluable tool. It provided a seamless way to monitor the bot’s activities, review trade history, and make informed decisions in real-time. Whether it was a quick adjustment to a trading strategy or a manual override during unforeseen market shifts, Telegram bridged the gap between automation and human intervention. On-demand status commands would give me all the information I wanted about active trades.

List of Telegram commands for FreqTrade:

/start: Starts the trader
/stop: Stops the trader
/status <trade_id>|[table]: Lists all open trades
         <trade_id> : Lists one or more specific trades.
                        Separate multiple <trade_id> with a blank space.
         table : will display trades in a table
                pending buy orders are marked with an asterisk (*)
                pending sell orders are marked with a double asterisk (**)
/trades [limit]: Lists last closed trades (limited to 10 by default)
/profit: Lists cumulative profit from all finished trades
/forcesell <trade_id>|all: Instantly sells the given trade or all trades, regardless of profit
/delete <trade_id>: Instantly delete the given trade in the database
/performance: Show performance of each finished trade grouped by pair
/daily <n>: Shows profit or loss per day, over the last n days
/stats: Shows Wins / losses by Sell reason as well as Avg. holding durationsfor buys and sells.
/count: Show number of active trades compared to allowed number of trades
/locks: Show currently locked pairs
/unlock <pair|id>: Unlock this Pair (or this lock id if it's numeric)
/balance: Show account balance per currency
/stopbuy: Stops buying, but handles open trades gracefully 
/reload_config: Reload configuration file 
/show_config: Show running configuration 
/logs [limit]: Show latest logs - defaults to 10 
/whitelist: Show current whitelist 
/blacklist [pair]: Show current blacklist, or adds one or more pairs to the blacklist. 
/edge: Shows validated pairs by Edge if it is enabled 
/help: This help message
/version: Show version

A Glimpse into the Markets

My journey into algorithmic trading not only unlocked profitable opportunities but also revealed the vast reservoir of data that underpins the financial markets. Market analysis became a daily ritual, and the data generated by the Money Printer served as a treasure trove of insights.

The Crucial Role of Backtesting

A pivotal feature that propelled my trading success was backtesting. It allowed me to fine-tune parameters, test various strategies, and gauge the bot’s performance under different market conditions. Backtesting became an indispensable tool in my arsenal, aiding in the continuous refinement of my trading strategies.

Conclusion

Gekko and FreqTrade illuminated the power of market analysis and the potential for data-driven decision-making in the world of finance.

The Money Printer, with its performance during the crypto bull run, served as a testament to the efficacy of algorithmic trading when applied with precision and diligence.

As I continue to explore the ever-changing landscape of financial markets, one thing remains certain: the world of algorithmic trading is a dynamic realm that rewards those who can navigate its complexities.