just a quick one to keep everyone updated on what’s happening or what’s keeping me pretty busy these days…

27th April 2009 : Mark your calendars…  :O)

in mid-March 2009, a reader of this blog introduced me to a fine gentleman who is currently based out of Hong Kong, the “financial hub” of the eastern world… the other one being sunny Singapore :O)

pioneering forex trade automation back in 2001, the company that he co-founded with a few other partners brought a new way of trading to the world.  actually, that’s about the same time MetaQuotes Software Corp released their first trading platform that allowed automation.

A Different Approach to Automated Forex Trading

it’s obvious now that MetaTrader is clearly the industry’s leader,  but these 2 companies took different routes.  MetaQuotes conquered the retail market, but this company went for the institutions and fund houses.  it’s only recently that they started offering their services to retail traders like you and me.

instead of providing blackbox EAs or the platform for them, this company focused on harnessing the benefits and power of algorithmic trading, and backing it up with professional traders and expert system developers, 24hrs a day. it’s like a hybrid between EAs and Managed Accounts.

i’ve spoken to him a few times already and have also attended one of his very informative webinars.  that said, i am pleased to announce that i’ve managed to book a time slot with him and will be running an exclusive webinar just for my blog members on 27th April 2009.

An EXCLUSIVE webinar not to be missed!

webinar details and registration link will be sent out within the next 24 hours.

if you would like to attend this webinar to find out more, please make sure that you are in my mailing list. simply fill up your name/email below and join me and the other 1600+ on this journey.

i’m already invested, and i’m sure you will find this webinar very interesting and enjoyably informative.  see you on the 27th! :O)

IMPORTANT UPDATE :

Due to the intended interactive nature of the webinar, we have decided to limit the capacity of the webinar to just 100 seats.  This is to ensure that the Q&A session at the end of the webinar is effective.  The speaker will endeavor to reply to ALL questions raised.  Sorry for any inconvenience that this may cause.  Webinar link will be sent out in the next few hours.  - ck

PS : i apologize if i’ve not replied to your emails or FaceBook messages lately. however, if you leave a comment on this blog, i will endeavor to reply to every single one as soon as i can. just click on the “comment” link below to leave a message.

for the record, i’m not a professional trader.  neither am i a successful trader by any count.

after publishing my LIVE statement on the blog, i’ve received a number of very encouraging emails (THANKS!! :O)… and also a few not so encouraging ones that insinuated that the statements were doctored or that i was hiding things by showing only snapshots of my account.

like i said in the comments in the last post, i am not trying to boast my performance, nor am i trying desperately to market PIPforia’s EAs and seminars.  i’m merely telling the world what has worked for me.  to be totally transparent, here’s the investor read-only password to my LIVE account at InterBankFX.  you can see every trade that i’ve made since June 2007.

** account info removed.  please refer to earlier post for trading history **

this small account was trading purely with the PIPforia HGM since Sept 2008.  have withdrawn a big chunk out to put into Alpari(UK) which seems to have better spreads than IBFX.  if you have been trading with IBFX, you’ll know how ugly the spreads get at times.

although i’ve been singing praises about HGM, i must also add that it’s not a strategy that would suite everybody’s trading psychology.  having a drawdown or floating loss is part and parcel of the hedging/gridding strategy.  the way i use it, i prefer to specify my own entry prices.  with a relatively good entry, the drawdown can be reduced significantly.  however, when an entry is bad or when the market is ranging and choppy without a good trend, the drawdown can sometimes grow to 5-20% if left unattended.

how much time do i spend trading the HGM?  well… i would say about 1 to 2 hours a day.  i sometimes watch more than i should, but frankly… watching it more did more harm than good :O)  anyway, i just specify the entry levels and the EA does most of the work.  however, i do watch it closely and do an assessment of the situation when the DD gets above 10%.  i’ve had to bail out of a trade cycle that brought the account down 15%. in Nov, but it was still a profitable month in the end.

personally, i like the fact that it’s not a 100% automated Expert Advisor.  trading it semi-automated has it’s benefits.  a friend once termed this “Cyborg Trading”.  he runs a blog too : http://optionstrader.joymastery.com

“Cyborg Trading“… half man half machine.  that’s trading with the human’s intuition and intelligence, and execution with the precision and speed of a robot.  and since the entry levels are decided by the trader, this, in essence, is “real-time” optimisation :O)

i’m happy enough getting  15% to 20% per month…. so “Cyborg Trading” it is.  having a 100% automated EA that is consistently profitable would be wonderful!…. but we all know how difficult it is to find one.  i believe they do exist… but not commercially :O)

good trading to all!!

ps : i like coffee  :O)

i’m blogging less often now… not because i’ve lost interest in trading and forex, but on the contrary, i’m beginning to realise that i’ve taken too many things for granted.  my obsession with finding the Holy Grail had also derailed me from reality and my life’s priority.

this blog post is going to be a MAJOR MILESTONE for me.  one that will mark the real beginning of my journey towards becoming a full time trader.  target date : december 2009.

if you have been following this little blog, you will know that this quest of “finding the best Forex Expert Advisor” has been very much a wild goose chase.  like so many people out there, i was intrigued and obsessed by the thought of making easy money by using Expert Advisors to trade for me.  20 months and thousands of dollars later, i realise that i was just being a lazy trader, trying to find a short cut to my pot of gold, willingly and happily being misled by the notion that one could make heaps of money on auto-pilot, 100% fully automated.

nonetheless, the search brought me on an amazing adventure that had led me to do things that i’ve never imagined doing.  allow me to chronologically list down some of the major events over the past 20 months of my journey… :

feb 2007 - introduced to my first EA (RobinHood)
june 2007 - LIVE traded with my first EA (profits paid for my holiday to Alaska :O)
aug 2007 - started EA review blog
sept 2007 - begin searching for the “Holy Grail” EA
dec 2007 - started a FaceBook EA Community (now 857 members)
jan 2008 - started a local EA community in Singapore (now 433 members, 3 meetings so far)
feb 2008 - realised PIPforia had a great strategy and EA,  posted a review
mar 2008 - impressed with PIPforia, invited Stella and David Robinson to bring their seminars to Singapore
apr 2008 - birth of EDVOasia Pte Ltd, to run PIPforia’s seminars in May 2008
may 2008 - spending more time trading, successful completion of the PIPforia HGM seminar
june 2008 - seeing good results trading with PIPforia’s strategies
sept 2008 - stopped looking for more EAs, blogged about “reality check”, renewed focus on own trading
oct 2008 - best trading month in sept, achieving +20.3% in LIVE account trading solely with PIPforia HGM

it’s only in sept 2008 did i start to wake up from my dream.  the lazy trader in me had blinded me long enough.  my unconscious desire for public acceptance had led me to spend the majority of my time building communities and serving others (blogging, running MeetUps, organising seminars, testing EAs, answering emails, etc, etc).  i was spending so much time doing things that were not in line with my main and ultimate objective - making money from trading!

take care of the “inner” first, then the “outer”

it’s only when i started taking ownership of my own trading did i start seeing the results that i was looking for.  15% - 20% per month… that’s all i really needed consistently to make a decent living from trading.  even 5% - 10% would be excellent with a sizable trading account.  that was my goal - to take care my myself first, my trading, my family (whom i’ve regretably neglected).

i’ve spent so much time, money and energy bringing PIPforia’s excellent strategies to Singapore.  with the seminars less than 2 weeks away (19th - 21st oct 2008), i’m looking forward to seeing my trading mentors and friends in Singapore again - Stella and David Robinson.

knowing Stella and David has been the highlight of my forex adventure.  great people… genuine and passionate about teaching others to succeed in the trading business.  with the knowledge and tools (EAs) from PIPforia, i believe i’ve found my “Holy Grail”.

yes… it’s a tall order to call something the “Holy Grail”, but from what i’ve experienced and seen, i think this is pretty darn close.  it’s going to take a long time to explain how the PIPforia strategies work, and i’m not about to summarise their seminars into a public blog and do them injustice.  but you’re in luck… a fellow trader/blogger just did a detailed review on the PIPforia’s Hedge Grid Management (HGM) strategy.  very fair and objectively done in my opinion. his first month trading it LIVE got him +15%.

have a read here :

http://www.macrotactics.com/2008/08/01/grid-trading-part-3-automated-grid-trading-using-pipforias-hgm

towards the end of the review, you will realise that it’s not a perfect trading system, and it’s one that requires market volatility and good price movements to make money.  but consider this… all we really need is a combination of a few simple things to start making good money.

1. basic technical analysis skills (eg. support/resistance, trend lines, fibonacci retracement levels)

2. an understanding of market fundamentals (watching the videos at CNN Money daily would help)

3. an automated “trend-following” and “non-directional” trading strategy that will make money when price starts to trend (regardless of which direction!)

the article by the Australian trader/blogger correctly pointed out that a drawdown is part and parcel of a hedging and gridding strategy.  but with the correct education, informed choice of currency pairs, and selective trading times, you should be on your way to making consistent returns using the PIPforia strategies.

remember… 15% - 20% per month is all we need.  anything more is a bonus (or a sign to review your risks and money management).

family, the October PIPforia seminars and my own trading are my top priorities now.  email me (ck@ckowyong.com) if you would like to know more about the seminars.  Stella and David will be arriving in less than 2 weeks.  we are all fully committed to see that every seminar attendee succeeds in his/her trading.  if you are still looking for the “Holy Grail”, have a look at PIPforia’s Hedge Grid Management (HGM) system.

so… in summary, here’s my plan :

1. achieve 15% - 20% per month consistently

2. build up my trading capital to US$20 - 30K

3. trade full time by end 2009

call me idealistic.  don’t we all need a plan or a road map to keep us focused on the end result?  i admit i do  :O)

good trading to all!!  :O)

i must apologize for not blogging as much as i wished to. anyway, a lot of the testing and reviewing activity is being done over at the excellent FaceBook group “Finding the Best Forex Expert Advisor“…

last count, there are already 270 members in the FaceBook group, many of which are active Expert Advisor traders and testers who share the same passion as me. the discussions are active and lots of EAs are being tested and reviewed. so much so, i’m starting to feel that the purpose of this blog has been met.

with almost 700 friends in my blog’s mailing list, 270 Expert Advisor enthusiasts in the FaceBook group, and 217 fellow Singaporeans(and residents) in a local group called “The Singapore Automated Forex Trading Meetup Group“, i consider myself extremely blessed :O)

** bringing PIPForia to Singapore **

those who are closer to me would know… i’ve been working very very hard recently, making arrangements for bringing Stella and David Robinson’s 2-Day Forex Trading Seminar to Singapore.

it all started when i began to realise that there were not many quality Forex courses in Singapore… let alone one that provides the students the use of Expert Advisors to automate their trading activities! so back in early Feb this year, i casually asked Stella and David (founders of PIPForia LLC) if they would like to bring their Forex education into Singapore. to cut a long story short, their simple “YES” sparked off a chain of activities that have led me to quiting my job (although i’m still working part-time) and starting a company just a few weeks ago : EDVOasia

i know that Stella and David have the ability and know-how to make a big impact to those who are willing to learn from them. i really hope that their 2-Day Seminar in Singapore will be a success. with the aim of reaching out to as many people as we can through their seminar, we have priced this excellent seminar to SELL!! i am absolutely sure that there’s no other course out there that can match it in terms of value and quality. you can visit this link to find out more about their “Bull Money Bear Money Forex Trading Seminar” -> http://pipforia-asia.com

scheduled for 24th and 25th May 2008 (Sat and Sun) at the Pan Pacific Hotel, i’ll be really really busy in the following weeks getting everything in place to run the event. wish me luck!! :O)

ck

if you’ve not read my review about the PipForia Hedged Grid Expert Advisor, here’s the link again : http://ckowyong.com/blog/?page_id=92

as mentioned earlier, i’ve managed to negotiate a small discount for those who subscribe to the PipForia HGM EA through me. so here’s the details….

the PipForia Hedged Grid EA subscription costs US$89 per month. David has been generous enough to allow me to offer all my mailing list subscribers a US$25 rebate* for the first month. what that means is that i’m helping you to lower down your risk of subscription by bringing your cost down to US$64. so instead of 9 pips, you now need less than a 7 pip gain on the 1st month to cover your subscription fee.

please note that David offers a 1 week free trial on his website : http://www.pipforia.com … so the best thing for you to do is to first get a hold of the free trial. once you are happy, subscribe to the full service at a discounted price of US$64. as a reseller, i will only get rewarded on your 2nd month of subscription (if you decide to stay on). ideally, i will hope that on the 2nd month, you will start to see for yourself if this system is really for you… or if it’s really making any good money. i really hope that this offer is good enough for you as i can’t really do any better without doing any injustice for the efforts that i’ve put into this blog.

once you are done with the free trial, you can subscribe to the REAL thing by clicking on the “Sign Up” link at the PipForia’s website. when prompted with the question “How did you learn about our site?“, please select “From CK Blog“. >>> this is very important as this is the only way to trace your subscription back to me so that i can give you the US$25 rebate*.

now… about the rebate, as you know, i only give out rebates in the form of KIVA.org gift certificates. this is how KIVA works :

a kiva.org gift certificate works this way :

1. i get a small commission when you subscribe to PipForia
2. once i receive the commission (usually a few weeks later), i will buy a US$25 kiva.org gift voucher and give it to you as a gift (ie. rebate for buying through me)
3. you cliam the gift by following the instructions and choose who you want to LOAN the US$25 to… helping them to get themselves out of poverty
4. when the LOAN gets repaid in full, you get back your US$25 as a kiva.org credit
5. once you have your US$25 credit, you can choose to cash it out, or you can loan it out again to help end world poverty (ie. renewable money!!)

KIVA.org is really something. in my opinion, if there’s anything capable of eliminating poverty in this World, micro-financing is IT… and KIVA.org is by far the best platform for individuals like us to get into the movement that was started by the father of micro-financing, Mr Muhammad Yunus. read more about this great man here : http://www.muhammadyunus.org

good trading to all!! - ck

note : as usual, you will be able to see all LIVE foward-test statments here : http://www.ckowyong.com/blog/statements (updated every 10 mins)

we hit a milestone today :O) since starting a FaceBook group to elevate the time required to maintain this blog, the group has now grown to 100 members. and coincidentally, the 100th member is David Robinson, creator of the PipForia Hedged Grid Expert Advisor. i’ve invited him over to the group to answer some queries in this excellent discussion : http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=6457269717&topic=3748

as a result of the thread, i have gathered the facts and figures and posted my review of PipForia. read the review here : http://ckowyong.com/blog/?page_id=92

i’d advise that you join the FaceBook group (with your real name please) to tap into the knowledge and experiences of the existing 100 members. it beats reading this blog as i can only afford to update it about once a week (that’s probably like watching a plant grow :O)

to be open about it, i am currently trying to negotiate a deal with David for PipForia. if all works out well, i should be able to give readers a rebate for buying/subscribing to PipForia through me. that’s what this blog is all about… finding good Expert Advisors and getting you discounts and rebates for buying them :O)

my mailing list members will be the first to know about new developements… so if you want in, please consider joining my mailing list by filling in the fields below :

ps : thanks to a generous coffee donor, i now have enough coffee money to subscribe to Artemis-Breakout for 2 months (€140!). will start testing it once it gets back on it’s feet and start making it’s usual gains. a good discount/rebate has already been worked out with the creator of Artemis-Breakout… but i would refrain from “selling” it to readers of this blog without first reviewing it myself to better understand it :O)

** please leave a comment if you have any queries and i’ll get to them asap. replies to emails will take longer… sorry **

another loss of -100 pips has done it for me. i’m staying out until William Boatright get’s it right… or when the market becomes favorable for Bogie again. i think this really drives home the saying that “past performance does not represent future performance”. everybody, including me, had very high hopes for Bogie-ATC2007-1… it’s unfortunate that it turned out like that. i hope all those who have subscribed to Bogie have not suffered too much damage. as you can see from the statement, being greedy by setting it to the high-moderate / 3 MaxOrders setting would have reduced an account by more than -70%.

that said, deep down… i still hope William continues to work on this EA and make it profitable again one day. the copy of Bogie that he has given me expires end march 2008… so that’s as long as it will get to prove itself.

i’m still thinking of Artemis-Breakout EA, but the 70 Euros per month is quite steep. will see how it performs in the remaining weeks of jan before making a decision. anyone interested to help subsidize the subscription to have this EA tested? (just trying my luck :O)

Hydra EA is making lots of trades… and the one running on USDJPY looks more promising compared to Bogie… although still below water.

PointBreak EA managed to get itself out of the drawdown! it looks like it’s performing as designed. if you have read the manual, you will be able to appreciate it’s pyramiding and averaging logic. quite ingenious really. PointBreak is slow to bring in the pips… and it’s a real pain to watch while it does it’s thing to get out of a drawdown. but if it can consistently do what we have seen it do, it should be a keeper as a longer-term growth EA.

PipForia’s Hedged Grid EA has done well too! very well in fact. like PointBreak, it got out of the drawdown nicely to get a good gain. it’s hard to tell how much the strategy was risking. will need to check with David and will update the blog about it.

still no trading activity on Steinitz… not sure what’s going on… will check with Don to get them fixed.

ps : if you are interested in buying any EAs, please do let me know, ok? i’ll try my best to get everyone a good discount from the creator/seller. with the blog’s readership growing day by day, i think we have the numbers to demand for a bit of discount if we acted as one.

please consider joining my mailing list, ok? i can’t offer any freebies at the moment, but i do endeavor to keep everyone abreast of my findings… and will give mailing list subscribers priority to information that i receive from the people that i am in contact with :O)

happy trading!! - ck