Tooling and execution
High-frequency trading
Automated trading at very high order rates and very short holding periods, measured in seconds or less. It depends on infrastructure rather than analysis, and it is not what a retail prop account is built for.
Also called: HFT
GFN’s figure
Two GFN rules constrain very fast automation directly: every trade must stay open for at least 2 minutes, and each round turn costs $7 per lot.
In detail
High-frequency trading,explained
Genuine high-frequency trading depends on co-located infrastructure and direct market access. What is usually described as HFT on a retail account is fast automation, which is a different thing.
Two ordinary rules make it impractical on most prop accounts regardless: a minimum holding time, and a per-lot commission that a strategy holding for seconds has to overcome on every trade.
Related
Terms thatcome with it
Most rules only make sense next to the ones they interact with. These are the entries this one depends on.
Tick scalping
Taking positions for a handful of ticks at a time, often held for seconds. Where the profit comes from a pricing lag rather than a market view, firms treat it as exploiting the environment.
Latency
The delay between an action and its effect - an order leaving your machine and reaching the venue, or a price leaving the venue and reaching your screen. Measured in milliseconds.
Algorithmic trading
Trading decisions and execution driven by code rather than by a person. It covers everything from a single automated entry rule to a fully systematic strategy running unattended.
Round turn
One complete trade - the entry and the exit together. Commission quoted per side has to be doubled to get the round-turn cost, which is the only figure worth comparing between firms.
Scalping
Taking many short-duration trades for small individual gains. It depends on tight costs and reliable execution, because the spread and commission are a large share of every result.
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