The strategy marketplace: what to check before connecting
A strategy card in the catalog shows seven parameters. Return is the least informative of them: it speaks about the past, while the other six tell you how far that past can be trusted.
What the card shows
- Growth
- Capital growth in percent over the period. The top line of the card and the most overvalued figure.
- Drawdown
- Maximum drawdown — the largest fall from a local peak. It defines what you would have had to endure to earn that growth.
- Age
- The strategy’s age, i.e. the length of confirmed history. A short history devalues any return.
- Balance
- The minimum or reference balance for copying and the current result in currency.
- Trading activity
- The percentage of time the strategy was actually trading.
- Followers
- The number of subscribers. A social signal, not a measure of quality.
- Available / On request
- Connect immediately, or only after the strategy author’s approval.
The order of checks
- Age: a history shorter than a year does not let you judge how the strategy behaves across different market regimes.
- Drawdown relative to return: 40% growth at 45% drawdown is an aggressive strategy, not a good one.
- Trading activity: low activity alongside high returns often means a few lucky trades rather than a working system.
- Open “About strategy” and look at monthly returns: it matters whether profit is spread over time or concentrated in one or two months.
- Look at the Detailization by symbol and by hour: a return that depends entirely on a single instrument is fragile.
The “About strategy” showcase
A separate page with full analytics on the strategy before you subscribe: key metrics, the capital growth curve, monthly returns, AI insights and a breakdown by day, hour and instrument. This is the main vetting tool — the card in the list gives only a superficial slice.
The reason to look here before, not after, connecting: the same charts after subscribing will already show your money, and you will have to decide under the pressure of open positions.
Frequently asked questions
Which matters more — return or drawdown?
Drawdown, because it determines whether you survive long enough to see the return. A strategy with 20% growth and 10% drawdown is usually more resilient than one with 40% growth and 45% drawdown: the second requires you to endure the deposit almost halving.
What does the On request status mean?
The strategy author approves subscribers manually. Connection does not happen immediately; the subscription stays in Pending approval status until the author decides.
How telling is a strategy’s age?
It is one of the most useful filters. A short history physically could not have covered different market regimes, so a high return over a few months more often reflects a lucky match with the current market phase than the durability of the approach.