Lesson

Your first trade step by step: from choosing a pair to alerts

Putting it all together: from choosing a pair in the scanner to two open positions with alerts. A checklist worth going through before every trade, and why your first setup should be small.

AuthorAntonio MerklePublishedOctober 31, 20268 min read

You can find setups (lesson 4), check them (lesson 5) and calculate them (lesson 3). Now for the first trade. Below is the perp + perp scheme; for spot + perp the steps are the same, except one leg is a spot purchase.

Steps

1. 1

   Prepare accounts and a reserve

   Accounts are verified on both exchanges and futures are available to you under the exchange’s rules. Funds are split evenly between the two exchanges, and each keeps a reserve for adding margin — capital that does not go into the position.
2. 2

   Choose a pair

   A large liquid coin, the same funding interval and time, a rate difference that has held for several payments in a row and is above your break-even, and a small price spread.
3. 3

   Check the contracts on both exchanges

   The same asset (project and token contract), contract size and quantity step, minimum order, funding interval, rate cap and next payment time — in the contract specifications on the exchange’s site.
4. 4

   Set margin before entering

   Isolated margin and 1–3× leverage — per contract. On Binance the margin mode is set per contract and cannot be changed while you have open orders or positions, so set it in advance.
5. 5

   Calculate size in coins

   Quantity = position size ÷ price. Use the same number of coins on both exchanges, rounded to the contract’s step. If one exchange trades in bundles (such as 1000PEPE), convert.
6. 6

   Open the legs almost simultaneously

   On a liquid coin with a small size — market orders on both exchanges back to back. On the less liquid side you can place a limit order first and open the second leg at market right after it fills.
7. 7

   Check the positions

   Sizes match, both positions point the right way, liquidation prices are far away. Write down entry prices — the price spread at exit is measured against them.
8. 8

   Set alerts

   In the scanner — on the spread narrowing and on price moves, plus price alerts on the exchanges at the levels where you would need to add margin.
9. 9

   Start a log

   Date, exchanges, quantity, entry prices, fees and every funding payment from the funding history. Without a log, a week later you cannot tell whether the setup made money.

Alerts in the P2P.Army scanner

Set the spread threshold at the level below which the setup stops paying off: the hint in the window suggests 0% or 0.1%, and for long holds even −0.05%, so you do not exit because of one weak payment. Tie the price-move threshold to leverage: the higher it is, the earlier you need to react.

The signal subscription is useful once you are comfortable: the bot sends new setups with a spread above your threshold 30–60 minutes before funding. Every signal is a reason to check the pair as in lesson 5, not a ready-made trade.

About the author

Antonio Merkle

Crypto expert, arbitrage trader and investor

Crypto expert and hands-on crypto arbitrage trader, investor and software developer with over 20 years of experience. On the P2P.Army blog he covers exchange news, P2P and cross-exchange arbitrage.

• Crypto arbitrage
• P2P arbitrage
• Cross-exchange arbitrage
• Crypto exchanges
• Investing
• Software development

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