Exit Rules

Exiting a trade is just as important as entering one — it determines how much profit you capture and how much risk you are exposed to. Arconomy provides several rules for closing positions, managing stop losses and take profits, and you can use indicator rules to detect conditions that signal it is time to exit.

Closing Positions

Arconomy provides two rules for directly closing positions:

Close Positions

The Close Positions rule closes one or more open positions when triggered. You can configure it to close all positions, positions for a specific symbol, or positions that match specific criteria. This rule is useful for:

• Closing all positions when an indicator signals a trend reversal
• Closing positions as part of an account protection strategy (e.g. when drawdown exceeds a threshold)
• Selectively closing positions based on trade state or symbol

End Strategy

The End Strategy rule closes all open positions and stops the strategy from executing any further. This is a more definitive action than Close Positions — once triggered, the strategy halts entirely. Typical use cases include:

• Emergency shutdown when maximum drawdown or daily loss limits are breached
• Stopping the strategy after a target profit has been reached
• Ending execution at a specific date or time (e.g. before a news event)

Stop Losses

Stop Loss

The Stop Loss rule sets or updates a stop loss order for one or more trades. It can be configured to set the stop at a fixed distance from the entry price (by amount, price or pips), or it can receive a dynamic value from another rule such as the ATR rule for volatility-adjusted stops. The Stop Loss rule also includes built-in features for:

• Trailing — the stop moves in the direction of the trade as price moves favourably, locking in profits
• Chasing — the stop adjusts to follow price action more aggressively
• Silent orders — the stop is managed internally by the strategy rather than placed as a broker order, which can be useful for avoiding stop hunts
• Scale out — partially close the position at the stop level rather than closing the entire position

You can also cancel an existing stop loss using the Cancel Stop Loss rule, which is useful when your strategy logic determines that the stop is no longer needed (e.g. after moving to breakeven via a different mechanism).

Aggregate Stop Loss

The Aggregate Stop Loss rule manages stop losses across multiple trades as a group rather than individually. It calculates the stop level based on the aggregate profit or loss of your open positions — or a sub-set of trades in the strategy. This is useful for:

• Setting a breakeven target across all trades in the strategy
• Managing risk at the portfolio level rather than per-trade
• Protecting combined profits when running multiple concurrent positions

Like the Stop Loss rule, the Aggregate Stop Loss also supports trailing and chasing features that automatically adjust the aggregate stop level as the combined position progresses.

Take Profit

Take Profit

The Take Profit rule closes a position when it reaches a predetermined profit target. The target can be set as a fixed amount, price or pips from the entry price. Like the Stop Loss rule, the Take Profit rule also supports trailing, chasing and silent order features.

You can also cancel an existing take profit using the Cancel Take Profit rule when your strategy logic determines the target should be removed or replaced.

Aggregate Take Profit

The Aggregate Take Profit rule manages take profit targets across multiple trades as a group. It sets the target based on the aggregate profit or loss for the strategy or a sub-set of trades such as open positions. This is useful when you want to close all positions once a combined profit target is reached, rather than managing individual trade targets.

Detecting Exit Conditions

Just as indicator rules can detect entry conditions, they can also detect when it is time to exit. By connecting indicator rules to a Close Positions rule or by using them as execution dependency conditions, you can build exit logic that responds to changing market conditions. Below are some common approaches.

Trend Reversal

Use indicator rules to detect when a trend is reversing and it is time to exit:

• Moving Average — exit a long position when the fast MA crosses below the slow MA, signalling that the uptrend may be over
• MACD — exit when the MACD line crosses below the signal line, indicating fading momentum
• RSI — exit a long position when RSI reaches overbought territory (e.g. above 70), suggesting the move may be exhausted

For example, if you entered a long trade on a moving average crossover, you might exit when the same MAs cross in the opposite direction. Connect two Moving Average rules to a Compare Values rule that detects when the fast MA crosses below the slow MA, and use that to trigger a Close Positions rule.

Volatility-Based Exit

Exit when volatility conditions change:

• Bollinger Band — exit when price returns to the middle band after touching the upper or lower band, suggesting the extended move is fading
• ATR — exit or tighten stops when ATR expands significantly, indicating increased uncertainty
• Keltner Channel — exit when price moves back inside the channel after breaking out

Candlestick Patterns

The Candle Pattern rule can detect reversal patterns that signal it is time to exit. For instance, detecting a Bearish Engulfing or Evening Star pattern while in a long position can indicate that sellers are taking control. Combine the Candle Pattern rule with other indicator context — such as the pattern occurring near a resistance level or with RSI in overbought territory — for stronger exit signals.

Building Exit Logic

Arconomy's exit logic is built the same way as entry logic — by connecting rules together on the canvas. A typical exit strategy combines multiple approaches:

1. Stop Loss or Aggregate Stop Loss — protects against adverse moves and defines the maximum risk
2. Take Profit or Aggregate Take Profit — captures gains at a predetermined level
3. Indicator-based conditions — detect when market conditions change and trigger a Close Positions rule
4. End Strategy — as a last-resort circuit breaker for account protection

Each rule's execution is controlled by execution dependencies, so you have full control over when each exit mechanism activates. Stop loss and take profit rules can also be dynamically updated throughout the lifecycle of a position — see the Dynamic Risk Management page for more details.