Order Allocation to Trade Accounts

Introduction

Important Notice: Since the release of version 2371, there are many enhancements to the Order Allocation to Trade Accounts functionality. It is important to be running this version or higher. Do not use this functionality in any older version of Sierra Chart. The new enhancements have been under development in versions approximately from 2364 to 2370, and therefore are not fully supported in those versions.

Version 2376 resolves a problem with the Order Allocation to Trade Accounts functionality when using the Scale In functionality with Attached Orders. When using that functionality you must run version 2376 or higher to avoid an issue with an improper increase in the quantities of the Attached Orders.

The Order Allocation to Trade Accounts functionality allows for orders that are placed on one trading account to be copied exactly to a set of other specified trading accounts.

The trade accounts to which the orders can be copied, can only be those Trade Accounts that available on the username that is used to login to the Trading service. To see what accounts are available on the logged in username, refer to Selecting Trade Account. All of the available accounts will be listed in that list.

This Order Allocation to Trade Accounts functionality can also be used in Trade Simulation Mode. It is recommended to use this mode for testing and evaluation of this feature.

However, Order Allocation to Trade Accounts cannot be used with the Back Testing functionality. It will not function properly and the orders allocated to the other accounts would always be entered and filled based upon the current price and time.

When using Trade Simulation Mode, additional Sim accounts can be added to be used within Sierra Chart by changing the value in the Global Settings >> General Trade Settings >> Number of Simulation Accounts setting.

The list of Trade Accounts to which the orders are copied is stored with the chart on which the trade order allocations/copies are made. Changing the symbol of the chart does not change the Trade Account allocations that have been made or the status of the Order Allocations.

If a chart is duplicated, the settings for the Order Allocation to Trade Accounts are not copied to the new chart. Order allocations will have to be setup in the newly duplicated chart.

If the Trading Account on the Trade Window is changed to a different Trading Account while the Order Allocation to Trade Accounts is active and orders are subsequently placed, then copies of the orders from that trading account will be made to the accounts that are specified in the Allocation Accounts (Refer to screenshot below).

If the Trading Account on the Trade Window is changed to a different Trade Account while the Order Allocation to Trade Accounts is active, and if the Trade Account selected is one of the Trading Accounts already specified in the Allocation Accounts, then when orders are placed, the primary account order is placed as normal and copies of those orders are placed for the other Trade Accounts specified in the Allocation Accounts. A second order is not placed for the primary account, even though it is also found in the Allocation Accounts.

It is only supported to copy trades among trading accounts on the same connection/Trading service being used within Sierra Chart. For example, it is not possible to copy trades between a Live account and a Simulated account because these will be on different trading connections.

In the case when performing automated trading from ACSIL, the new orders, order modifications, and order cancellations from this automated trading system will automatically be applied to the other accounts specified through the Allocation Accounts list for the chart the automated trading system is on. Assuming the Order Allocation to Trade Accounts Enabled option is set to Yes. Refer to the Setup Instructions.

An order confirmation is always shown when using the Order Allocation to accounts functionality. It contains a line that says Additional Accounts: showing the other accounts the orders will be sent to as well. This cannot be disabled.

Functionality

The following functionality is supported.

1. Can specify a quantity multiplier for the additional accounts an order is allocated to. This is entered as a floating-point number and rounded to the nearest integer after the multiplier is applied. A quantity of less than 1 is rounded up to 1. This is specified through the Allocation Trade Account Multiplier (refer to screenshot below).

2. When modifying or canceling the order from the primary trade account which was allocated to other accounts, those orders allocated other accounts will also be modified and canceled in the identical way. When there are changes to the order quantity (Allocation Trade Account Multiplier), the quantity multiplier will be applied.
   
   One exception to this is when the parent order fills, the Attached Orders for the original order will not cause the Attached Orders for the identical orders allocated to other accounts, to be modified in the same way since that will happen automatically with their own parent order.
3. All Order Types are supported. Including Scale In and Scale Out functionality.
4. When an order is submitted from a Chart or Trading DOM (the controlling Chart/Trading DOM) that is configured to use the Order Allocation to Trade Accounts functionality, the orders that are submitted to the other Trade Accounts are linked to this controlling order. Therefore, even if the Order Allocation to Trade Accounts is subsequently disabled, this controlling order if it still exists, will continue to control the orders submitted to the other Trade Accounts.

Setup Instructions

1. On the Trade Window select M/Menu >> Settings >> Order Allocation to Trade Account to bring up the Order Allocation to Trade Account window.
   
2. Select an account in the Available Accounts list.
3. Press the Add button twice to add the account to the Allocation Accounts (List).
4. Repeat the prior two steps as needed to add additional accounts to the Allocation Accounts list. Note that it is not possible to add the currently active trading account specified in the Trade Account dropdown box on the Trade Window.
5. Set the Order Allocation to Trade Accounts Enabled setting to Yes which indicates that the Order Allocation is active and any order placed from this chart will have exact copies of those orders placed for the accounts in the Allocation Accounts list. Setting that option to No will disable the action of copying the orders to the other accounts.
6. A Trade Account can be removed by selecting it in the Allocation Accounts list and pressing the Remove button twice.
7. Select OK to close the Order Allocation window.
8. You can now submit an order as you normally do and it will automatically get copied to the other specified Trade Accounts.

Order Actions Not Performed in Allocated Accounts

An order action that you perform in the primary controlling account which includes a new order, a flatten or reverse operation, an order modification or an order cancellation, will be performed in the other allocated counts. However, these actions can be rejected for one reason or another.

You have to monitor the Positions for the other allocated accounts through Trade >> Trade Positions Window.

Look at the Trade >> Trade Activity Log to determine the cause of any order rejection or action failures.

A particular order action that fails in one or more other allocated accounts, does not indicate a problem with Sierra Chart. Instead it is a circumstance outside the control of Sierra Chart.