Creating a Bot

To create a new bot, select “Create Bot" in the bot dashboard.

Customize the bot with a name and icon, select a brokerage or paper trading account, give the bot an allocation, and input position limits in the bot's global settings.

Global settings can be edited anytime but must be entered when a bot is created.

Name

Give your bot a name. Naming the bot makes it easy to remember the bot’s purpose, inputs, and strategy. As you add more bots to your portfolio, it is important for the name to be easily identifiable to help keep you organized.

Icon

You can customize your bot with a colored icon to help identify your strategies and organize your portfolio.

Account

Link the bot to a connected brokerage account or paper trading account. You cannot change the bot's account after you create the bot (you'll need to clone the bot to change accounts).

You do not need to have a connected brokerage account to use the Option Alpha paper trading account.

Allocation

Allocation is the total capital available for the bot to open positions. The bot will not enter new positions if it exceeds the allocation limit. Bot allocation limits are calculated at position entry.

Allocation is different than risk or position limits. Allocation is the total purchasing power the bot has to open new positions. Risk defines the maximum amount that can be lost on a single position and can be set as a dollar or percentage amount in the automation editor.

Market conditions at position closing may cause increased capital allocations beyond the calculated maximum risk at position entry. If the market is illiquid or bid-ask spreads are wide, bots have the potential to risk more capital when the position is closed than was allocated at entry.

For example, if there is a wide bid-ask spread for a credit spread position, the ask price to close the spread may exceed the spread’s width. As always, you have the ability to override positions, or SmartPricing settings, exit criteria, and orders at any time.

If you manually override a position, the Option Alpha platform no longer communicates with the position The position will not count against position limits or capital allocation limits. You may need to re-consider your bot’s capital allocation limit if you manually override positions.

Position Limits - Daily

You must also set daily and total position limits when creating a bot. Bot scanners and other entry automations automatically turn off when a position limit is reached. 

The daily limit is the maximum number of positions the bot can open in one day.

For example, a bot with a daily limit of three positions will stop scanning for new positions if three positions have been opened in one trading day.

Position limits are for opening positions only; you can close as many positions as you want.

Position Limits - Total

The total limit is the maximum number of open positions available for a bot. The bot will not open new positions if the total position limit is reached.

For example, a bot with a total limit of six positions will stop scanning for new positions if there are six positions open inside the bot.

Create Bot

Select “Create Bot” after you enter the global settings. You may edit the bot settings later if you want to make changes.

Your new bot is added to your portfolio. The Positions tab, Automations tab, and Bot Log are blank and ready for you to add automations. New bots are automatically "Off" by default when created. To turn on the bot, simply toggle the switch to "On" in the top right corner of the dashboard.

Deleting a bot

To delete a bot, click on the three dots on the top right of the bot's dashboard and select 'Delete.' Deleting a bot will remove it from your account and all position stats  will no longer be accessible. You can always save your bot as a template. There is no limit to the number of templates you can have.