What is a maximum open positions rule?
Quick answer
A maximum open positions rule limits how many positions an account can hold at once, for example five. It prevents a trader from spreading risk across many simultaneous positions that together exceed sensible exposure, and limits some grid and martingale strategies.
Detailed answer
How firms use it:
- Combined with lot limits to control total exposure.
- Lower limits for smaller accounts or newer traders.
- Applied per account, counting positions across all instruments.
What to define:
- Whether pending orders count.
- What happens when the limit is reached: the new order is refused, typically.
Enforcement must be atomic. If two orders arrive at the same moment, a naive check can let both through. PropExecutor checks this rule inside the transaction that writes the order, after taking a per-account lock, so simultaneous orders cannot both slip past the limit, even across server instances.
Choosing the number
Base it on how your traders actually trade. If most hold one to three positions, a limit of five or ten blocks grids without affecting typical traders. Review the limit against your account data after a few months.
State on the rules page whether pending orders count towards the limit, since traders often assume they do not.
PropExecutor team · Updated
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