5th Annual Texas A

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5th Annual Texas AM Undergraduate Graduate
Foreign Exchange Trading Competition
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The Competition
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PRIZES!

• Individual Prizes
• 1,000 prize pool top five performers
• 10,000 GFT FUNDED TRADING ACCOUNT
• University Prize
• Bragging right for the next year

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Competition

• The competition is for undergraduate and graduate
  finance and business majors interested in
  fundamental trading, technical trading, and
  foreign exchange rates
• The competition is being coordinated through the
  Reliant Energy Trading Center at Texas AM
  University with the assistance of the RTC
  Industry Advisory Board

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Competition

• All questions, concerns and ideas should be
  addressed to
• Corey Walter Texas AM University
• Email coreyawalter_at_gmail.com
• All decisions made regarding questions, concerns,
  penalties and outcomes for the competition are at
  the discretion of Dr. Hallermann and are final
• By entering the competition, students waive the
  right to contest penalties or outcome to any
  authority outside of the competition

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Competition Time Frame

• Sign Up Sign up begins Friday, Sept. 25 at Noon
• GFT Website http//www.gftforex.com/mays
• Use the above link to register for an account
• Other demo account registration will result in
  sales calls

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Competition Warm Up

• If students wish to practice trading before
  October 1
• Students are encouraged to learn the DealBook 360
  system after Friday, Sept. 25 at Noon
• We encourage students to trade small amounts as
  they get comfortable with the system (1 lot).
  This is to practice on the system, not to try to
  get ahead in the competition.
• If students enter trades and gain/lose on those
  trades before the competition
• It will affect the starting amount for the
  competition
• It will not affect their percentage return score
  for the competition
• Thus, it is unnecessary to reset accounts on
  October 1

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Competition Changes

• This year there are two divisions
• Individual
• University
• Universities with a minimum of 10 competitors
  (combined graduate and undergraduate) are
  eligible to compete in the university competition
• The winning university has bragging rights for
  the following year

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Competition Brackets Prize Money

• After Session 1
• Those having traded less than five trade
  strategies will be removed from the competition
• After Session 2
• The top five traders will be rewarded prize money
  based on their percentage of return among the
  total prize pool.
• The number of prizes and the prize pool may be
  adjusted upward according to the number of
  competition participants
• Example shows 6 prizes, but prize money is for
  the top five participants.

• Prize Pool Distribution Example

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Overall Grand Prize 10,000 GFT FUNDED ACCOUNT

• NOTES
• The overall winner of the Fourth Annual Texas AM
  University Undergraduate Graduate
  Inter-University FX Competition will have the
  opportunity to trade an account at GFT with an
  initial funding of 10,000 for a total of six
  months, and GFT will pay the winner the total net
  profit, if any, earned in the account in that
  timeframe. If there is a net loss, it will be
  borne by GFT. Normal GFT account opening
  processes are required, but GFT will retain
  ownership of the account, and no withdrawals will
  be permitted.
• The net profit or loss will be calculated from
  the time and date the account is opened until six
  months from that date, and the customer will be
  permitted to trade the account with unlimited
  round-turn transactions between the two dates,
  subject to applicable margin requirements. A
  round-turn is defined as one complete trade a
  transaction comprising the buying and selling of
  a standard lot size of 100,000 for one currency
  pair. The account must be self-traded by the
  winner and may not be traded by any other person.
  Base 10 Trading transactions under the standard
  lot size of 100,000 will not be permitted.
• Only one winner will be eligible for this prize.
  For non-U.S. accounts, the net profit, if any,
  will be converted from U.S. dollars in accordance
  with a then-current exchange rate, as determined
  by GFT. For tax reporting purposes, a 1099 form
  may be issued at year-end to a recipient of a net
  profit. This is not an offer or solicitation in
  any jurisdiction where such an offer or
  solicitation is not authorized. GFT reserves the
  right in its sole discretion to amend, restrict
  or revoke this offer at any time.

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Team Competition Notes

• University teams will compete for bragging rights
  (sorryno cash)
• A university must have ten (10) participants to
  qualify for the team competition
• Team competition winner is determined by the
  highest average percentage return of the total
  competing university teams (all competitors for
  the team are included in the average calculation)

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CompetitionParameters
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Trading Platform GFT DealBook FX 360

• Students will complete trades using a demo
  account starting with 50,000 on the GFT Forex
  Trading Platform DealBook FX 360
• It can be downloaded at their website (more on
  this later)
• www.gftforex.com/mays
• NOTE Make certain that you use this website
  versus their main website. Otherwise salesmen
  will telephone you and potentially drop your
  account!
• Students may trade any currency pair available on
  the DealBook Platform

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Competition Parameters Required Trading

• In each trading session, students will perform a
  minimum of five (5) trade strategies to be
  eligible for prizes
• Trading sessions
• Oct 1 15 (CST)
• Oct 16 31 (CST)
• A trade strategy consists of
• Entering into a trade or series of trades on a
  particular currency pair
• Setting your exit strategies
• See strategy examples on the following slide
• There is no maximum number of trades per trading
  session
• If a student does not complete five trade
  strategies per session, they will be dropped from
  the competition

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Competition Parameters Strategy Examples

• Entering into a trade strategy on a particular
  currency pair and exiting the strategy followed
  by a subsequent trade in the same currency pair
  will typically be considered multiple strategies.
  This will be determined by trade justification
  given in the students trade journal
• Example 1 (3 strategies)
• Day 1 Buy 5 contracts Euro/US (Open Strategy 1)
  
• Day 2 Sell 5 contracts Euro/US (Close Strategy
  1)
• Day 3 Buy 5 contracts Euro/US (Open Strategy
  2)
• Day 4 Buy 5 contracts GBP/US (Open
  Strategy 3)
• Example 2 (2 strategies)
• Day 1 Buy 5 contracts Euro/US (Open Strategy 1)
  
• Day 2 Sell 10 contracts Euro/US (Close Strategy
  1 Capture a Reversal (Strategy 2))
• Litmus Test
• If the second position is a continuation of the
  initial strategy, this is not a new trade
  strategy
• If the second position is justified because of a
  significant parameter change since the initial
  strategy, this is considered a new trade strategy

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Trade Position Sizes

• Minimum trade size is one (1) contract
• One spot contract represents 100,000 of currency
• Margin for a spot contract is 1100 (1,000)
• Maximum trade size is eight (8) contracts per
  strategy
• A strategy consists of a spot position in any
  currency pair
• Students can use multiple entry exit strategies
  per currency pair to maximize return or minimize
  risk.
• However, staggered entry and exit strategies are
  not multiple trade strategies (see previous
  slide).
• Maximum Holdings for any one currency pair is
  eight (8) contracts at any one time (long or
  short)
• Penalty for a position great than 8 contracts is
  a 1 deduction to your final percentage return
  score, per contract over, per trade
• Administrators will randomly enter accounts to
  check position sizes throughout the competition

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Competition Parameters Initial Trade Reporting

• Upon completing a trade
• Students will maintain a trade journal of their
  transactions.
• The Trade Journal Includes
• Trade (currency pair and if you went long or
  short)
• Number of contracts
• Entry price with exit strategies
• Justification for the trade
• Journal can be in Word, PowerPoint or Excel
• Prize money winners will be asked to submit their
  trade journal before receiving awards. Students
  not submitting a Journal will lose their place in
  the individual competition

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Competition Parameters Subsequent Journal
Reporting

• When a trade strategy hits an automated exit,
  students should post their results in their
  journal
• If a student alters their strategy or exits a
  trade strategy manually, the student should post
  the trade strategy changes and justification in
  their journal

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Journal Recording of Executed Trade Strategies
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Journal Reporting Executed Trades Example
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Competition Parameters End of Session Reporting

• Students will submit their account and passwords
  on the Competition website at the beginning of
  the competition. Those that do not do so are
  removed from the competition but count towards
  the team competition
• At the end of each session (October 15 October
  31), competition administrators will enter
  student accounts to check trade activity,
  historic position volume size and equity
  positions
• We will use these reports to determine
  competition placing

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Registration Process
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GFT Forex RegistrationWebsite

• At www.gftforex.com/mays
• Sign up for a demo account
• Download the DealBook FX 360 software
• Use ONLY the link above to register
• Different demo acct. registration will result in
  sales calls from GFT Support

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GFT Website Download
Create Demo Account
Download Demo Software
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Trade Platform The Start
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Trade Platform - Customized
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DealBook FX 360 Tutorials Help

• You will find information of how to customize
  your trade platform at
• The DealBook FX 360 Users manual and other
  helpful documents posted on the Mays Portal
• The Help File in the DealBook FX 360 software
• http//www.stitrader.com/freetrial/ for help with
  trading strategies
• Numerous trading-related books at retail
  bookstores

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Registration

• Register at www.gftforex.com/mays
• Create a user demo trading account after Friday,
  Sept. 25 at Noon
• Download the trading software platform (DealBook
  F/X 360)
• Students will use the platform develop and
  implement trading strategies