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Algorithmic FX Trading


Foreign Exchange trading, commonly referred to as Forex or FX, is an exciting investment activity with a high potential for profits that can be greatly helped by implementing and using algorithmic software solutions and strategies, systems, programmes and trading platforms.

Simply put, FX trading is the act of placing a bet on the future price direction of currencies. If you believe that the price of a country's currency is going to rise, you take a long position in it. Conversely, if you believe the price is going to fall, you simply take a short position.

FX trading can be highly profitable, but also extremely volatile. Having platforms in place that are ready to inject pre-programmed orders when the right signals are seen at just the right instant enables a trader to maximise his profits through low latency execution, i.e. reducing the time lag between placing the order and when it is executed.

Typically, traders use a relatively small amount of cash, in a ‘margin’ account, and utilise leverage provided by the clearer to trade a larger position in your chosen currency automatically.  Because your margin is small, a minor price movement can have a significant positive effect on your investment. Of course, movement in the opposite direction to your position can have exactly the opposite effect, which is why the successful currency trader is typically a person who allows no emotion into his trading decisions.

Algorithmic-based charting software can help traders make the most of the forex markets via chart and indicator analysis. Traders are provided with charts of currency pairs showing price changes over a given time and these are overlaid with price change or "tick" charts and moving average-based momentum calculations.  Algorithmic forex charting software is used by institutional traders and technical analysts for forecasting future price movements. 

Algorithmic trading eliminates the emotion that can commonly occur in trading. Information is the key to FX trading. You have the opportunity to study the country whose currency you wish to trade. Check for political stability, central bank policy, economic statistics and other factors. Algorithmic, automated trading digests and assembles the factors that influence the movement of a currency. When those factors line up correctly, a trade occurs without further involvement of the trader. 

There is a wide array of different “off the shelf” automated forex platforms on the market as different forex traders believe in different styles of trading. Some of this software comes free as part of a promotion for a trade-mentoring programme, while there will be charges for other systems. There is usually a trial period wherein you can have a free try-out of a broker's forex sell-side software before you open an account, so that you can "test drive" different systems to see which will best suit your purposes. 

There is algorithmic forex software available for Mac and Linux as well as Windows. When looking at different software programmes, you'll want to know: what are the available technical indicators; whether or not it is possible to trade directly from the charts; whether the software enables you to view historical data; whether you are able to monitor a wide range of information at once and whether you find the GUI (graphical user interface) aesthetically pleasing.

To be sure that you are using reliable and well-facilitated algorithmic forex trading software, you need to turn to a technologically savvy brokerage house. Here at The Kyte Group, we have made large investments in infrastructure tailored to low latency, high frequency trading. Featuring massive storage capacity and top-end internet connectivity we have the infrastructure necessary for meeting high demands of data transfer required by FX traders.  The most up-to-date server hardware as well as air-conditioning and power considerations are all part of our infrastructure, so you can be confident that your software will work reliably. We can also give you the latest specification trading machines at a significant discount to list price. 



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The Kyte Group Limited was founded by David Kyte in 1985 on LIFFE, the embryonic futures exchange in the heart of the City of London.
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Kyte's customers are market professionals, either sole traders, teams of market,
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Providing clearing and settlement services to professional traders who transact business on the world's leading exchanges.
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