Winners

Winter 2024 Competition Winners

First Place: BEST 1086 - Lal

BEST 1086 - Lal

Employed

Residence: Australia

What strategies did you employ throughout the competition? I’m a short seller. I used 5mins resistance level.

What did you do to prepare for the competition? I did paper trading for the last 6 months.

What did you learn from the competition? Consistency is the key for me. I remember I almost lost the first place on the last day of the competition.

What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition? Paper trading for the last 6 months.

What kind of mistakes did you make? Sometimes, I oversized and didn’t cut the loss quickly.

Did you feel you were successful during this competition? Yeah I'm very happy with my journey in this competition.

Are you part of a trading community? If so, which one? None.

Finally, is there any additional information about you, your trading and the competition overall? I’ve learnt trading psychology a lot from this competition.

Second Place: BEST 1093 - Carlos

BEST 1093 - Carlos

Journalist

Residence: Peru

What strategies did you employ throughout the competition? In this competition, along all its seasons, we can see that the daily profitability obtained by competitors on top of the ranking is much higher than what traders get in the stock market with real money. This is due to the shares chosen to buy. While in the stock market with real money, the most demanded shares are those with the largest capitalization such as those of S&P 500, for this competition I chose those with the highest daily volatility, as they are the only ones that will allow you daily profits like those that winners of prior different seasons of this competition have had.

What did you do to prepare for the competition? During the first three weeks of the competition, I dedicated to studying how I could get the highest profitability, reaching some conclusions which I used in the last 2 days of the competition.

What did you learn from the competition? I learnt from this competition not only that this is a way to earn a lot of money in the stock market, but also that we have to be careful because we could lose a lot. It is important to control emotions and practice a lot before performing a new strategy.

What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition? My experience is mainly with Options.

What kind of mistakes did you make? My main error was to study how I was going to be operating and create my strategies when the competition had already started. Because of this, most of the time of the competition I dedicated to studying and testing, and only during the last two days I could apply what I had learnt.

Did you feel you were successful during this competition? Yes, I think I was successful in this competition, because in the last two days I could overcome an unfavorable situation and finish in the second place.

Are you part of a trading community? If so, which one? No, I am not part of any community.

Third Place: BEST 1090 - José

BEST 1090 - José

Operations Manager - Software Comapny

Residence: Trujillo, Peru

What strategies did you employ throughout the competition? For stock selection, usually related with volume and news. Setups, Open Range Breakout, Trends or Extreme Reverses, and in some cases, Scalping.

What did you do to prepare for the competition? I prepare my trading strategy on how I will conduct my trades and what setups I would use. Adapt my DAS configuration to operate with the proper size and risk.

What did you learn from the competition? I learned to operate my setups with an account that started at 50 thousand and took trades with proper size for this capital and buying power. Practicing reading the tape, charts, and price action. I love L2 from DAS. The big lesson for me was the last day when I was thinking that I have no chance to get into the winner's circle. However, I decided to trade well all day and increase my P&L to get fourth place. (It was a holiday that day in my country) Then when I was in fourth place, I saw near the last half hour that the third place had a terrible loss that moved him down many positions and I got the third place.

What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition? Been doing trading for 2-3 years.

What kind of mistakes did you make? In some cases, the trades were unattended (lost profits on important levels or when trend changed) or I took some trades without the proper analysis. I remember some cases that happened to me, as is usual for people like me who are in the process, don´t cut losses fast thinking that the trend would change, more time in the lost most difficult to accept the reality.

Did you feel you were successful during this competition? Yes, for sure many trades were winners and many days with good profits, at the first hour where I used to practice my setups and with the proper preparation, the process of stock selection and the rules for the operation my trading was so good as a demonstration that someday I would do well with real money.

Are you part of a trading community? If so, which one? Yes, I'm a member of Bear Bull Traders (BBT), where I learned to trade with the DAS platform. Since last year I was a little absent from the community, however I will come back soon when I come back to trading. It is a good community that is growing a lot and uses DAS.

Finally, is there any additional information about you, your trading and the competition overall? Thanks for the contest. I recommend that to everybody who wants to practice with the DAS platform, you can get many days to do that inclusive before the competition as an early subscription. The experience of the competition gives additional challenges for your trades for doing well as a real scenario. I've demonstrated to myself that I can trade very well and need to continue practicing until one day I would get the capital to trade with real money.

Fall 2023 Competition Winners

First Place: BEST 0320 - Tran

BEST 0320 - Tran

Full Time Trader

Residence: Hanoi, Vietnam

What strategies did you employ throughout the competition? I trade stocks independently and some strategies that I use are: (1) Quantities Analysis, based on thousands of charts and raw data (2) Gap and Go Strategies (3) Momentum Stocks (4) Catalyst-based (5) Systematic monitoring (6) Parabolic Short.

What did you do to prepare for the competition? Just register and take part in the competition. I have taken part in the competition a few times but no serious trading. I like the Das Trader Pro platform because It helps me to execute the trades effectively. Especially when I manage multiple accounts at the same time. Many other broker platforms are written in Java, and they are too slow, and difficult to handle effectively. The Das Trader platform is robust, effective and very beautiful.

What did you learn from the competition? There are some new trading styles from other traders, and they are effective. I should learn more about that.

What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition? I have studied stock trading for 5 years, and trade everyday.

What kind of mistakes did you make? Some of my mistakes are: sizing the trade, jumping into the trade a little bit too early, and not stopping loss quickly.

Did you feel you were successful during this competition? Yes I do. I’m confident that I do my best and can have good results. The result is good enough, but I think I can do better.

Are you part of a trading community? If so, which one? None.

Finally, is there any additional information about you, your trading and the competition overall? I’m in the process of developing a fund that focuses on day trades, because I have a vision and realize the potential of this area. Of course it is very difficult, very challenging. Many things to learn and improve. But I think we can do it well. I think the competition is a good chance for many traders who want to improve themselves. And the awards are wonderful .

Second Place: BEST 1003 - Lazar

BEST 1003 - Lazar

Residence: Malta

What strategies did you employ throughout the competition? I was mainly focusing on short-selling.My initial focus was on following my strategies and stick to my plan, and in no case enter with big positions - oversizing.

What did you learn from the competition? Learning about DAS Mobile App.

What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition? I have been involved in the market for a few years now. Last year, I participated in this competition and secured the 3rd position.

Did you feel you were successful during this competition? Certainly, engaging in the competition provided an enjoyable trading experience,helping to stay clear of overtrading with real accounts on the side.

Are you part of a trading community? If so, which one? The Friendly Bear Podcast trading community.

Finally, is there any additional information about you, your trading and the competition overall? Last year, I achieved the third position in the Spring 2022 Competition Winners. What's interesting is that in the Spring '22 competition, I competed under the number #1003, just like I am doing this year. Seems like it's a lucky number for me! 🙂

Third Place: BEST 1077 - Abhiram

BEST 1077 - Abhiram

College Student

Residence: Connecticut

What strategies did you employ throughout the competition? Mainly systematically trading gappers but tried out some discretionary trading with parabolic shorts and some longs.

What did you do to prepare for the competition? Went through DAS manual, set up hot-keys, and reviewed my system again.

What did you learn from the competition? This competition really proved to me that the statistics of trader success isn’t just a theoretical number, as it was reflected in the leaderboard results.

What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition? Been actively trading and studying for 2 years now.

What kind of mistakes did you make? First time having access to no limits on day trades as I’ve been under pdt since starting, so emotions definitely came into the picture and trading my p&l versus sticking to a systematic approach.

Did you feel you were successful during this competition? Yes, I came into this competition to try out trading over pdt and treated it as real money. Placing third and actually being green at the end of the month proved to myself that I have an edge. It motivates me to push even harder on my personal trading to reach my goals.

Are you part of a trading community? If so, which one? Investors Underground.

Finally, is there any additional information about you, your trading and the competition overall? Open to connect with anyone who shares the same seriousness as me in this business. I recommend everybody to participate in this competition as it is a great way to learn about yourself and try out new strategies.

Winter 2023 Competition Winners

First Place: BEST 1015 - Shawn

BEST 1015 - Shawn

Therapist

Residence: Vancouver, Canada

What strategies did you employ throughout the competition? Mainly gap up short/trading daily support/resistance levels.

What did you do to prepare for the competition? Just review my strategies, analyze market conditions and also do paper trading.

What did you learn from the competition? Very important to have good risk management, stick to your plan, avoid revenge trading.

What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition? Been doing trading for 2-3 years.

What kind of mistakes did you make? Became emotional during the losing trades/ adding into losers.

Did you feel you were successful during this competition? Yes for the most part.

Are you part of a trading community? If so, which one? So far I'm not part of any trading community.

Finally, is there any additional information about you, your trading and the competition overall? I really enjoyed this competition, really learned a lot from it.

Second Place: BEST 1057 - Patrick

BEST 1057 - Patrick

Restaurant Consultant

Residence: Houston, TX

What strategies did you employ throughout the competition? Depending on the market environment we are in. Over extended gap & crap, mean reversion worked really well during this period. I typically employ the strategy by looking how the stock reacts when it’s @ key areas are like Supply & resistance with conjunction of pivot points, chart patterns, vwap and moving averages.

What did you do to prepare for the competition? Getting in routine of looking at PM gappers with criteria like volume, gap up or gap down percentage then narrowing down on few, dig little deeper if there is dilutions, cash needed, etc.

What did you learn from the competition? Very important to have good risk management, stick to your plan, avoid revenge trading.

What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition? Have been trading on and off for little over 3 yrs.

What kind of mistakes did you make? Risk management was a too loose. Got annihilated on couple black swans. I think @ one point I was down more than $15k back to back in 2 days. Definitely need to work on patience, discipline.

Did you feel you were successful during this competition? Yes in the sense of getting placed. but also made me realize how much more works needs to be done to be the trader I wanted to be.

Are you part of a trading community? If so, which one? Do not belong to any trading community. There are so much information online, all you have to do is just dig a little.

Finally, is there any additional information about you, your trading and the competition overall? Really appreciate DAS and Cobra hosting this trading competition so that people can learn and get familiar while gaining experience and confidences.

Third Place: BEST 1044 - Justin

BEST 1044 - Justin

PLC Programmer

Residence: Morenci, AZ

What strategies did you employ throughout the competition? Just look for overextended stocks and short them. Also took long positions if they dropped enough, formed a base then made a higher low. But there and risk to the previous low.

What did you do to prepare for the competition? Honestly, nothing.

What did you learn from the competition? Sometimes the amount of money you make depends on the volatility of the market for that day. Also, a reminder that you don't decide how much money you make from the market, the market decides that. You just figure out how much of that money you are going to keep or lose from your discipline.

What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition? Just been trading on and off as I can and try to learn different strategies.

What kind of mistakes did you make? Not holding on to my winners as long as I should have, and should have scaled out of positions once in profit to let the winners run.

Did you feel you were successful during this competition? Yes, I noticed when I should not be greedy and either took my profit that I had or cut my losses to wait for another setup.

Are you part of a trading community? If so, which one? MIC (My Investing Club), BBT (Bear Bull Traders), JTrader.

Finally, is there any additional information about you, your trading and the competition overall? I have been trading for a number of years off and on and seem to always not let me winners run. I also average up or down and usually end up coming out on top, but the times that I don't cut my losses is when things go very bad. Overall, the competition reminded me to wait for setups to come to you and not try and force a trade.

Click the titles below to see previous competition winners.

First Place: BEST 0983 – Willian

BEST 0983 – Willian

Residence: Chicago

What strategies did you employ throughout the competition?I have learned many strategies, but the one I used the most is the Pivot Point and Opening Break. Since this was a swing trading competition, I used the pivot points on a daily chart..

What did you learn from the competition? Apart from getting familiar with the platform, I have learned to have patience and trust my plan.

What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition?I have only been using simulators and taken part in some competitions.

What kind of mistakes did you make? I tried to follow and seek better results of other traders in the competition. I deviated from my plan, which was a mistake.

Did you feel you were successful during this competition? Yes.

Are you part of a trading community? If so, which one?I do not belong to any communities. I learned on my own and I do not believe in gurus or magic formulas. I only believe in configurations that I have tried and that have worked for me.

Finally, is there any additional information about you, your trading and the competition overall?Thank you to DAS for making this kind of competition as it helps people who want to learn to trade gain more confidence.

Second Place: BEST 1017 – Malik

BEST 1017 – Malik

Sr. Account Manager

Residence: London

What strategies did you employ throughout the competition?I mainly used price and volume with EMAs and VWAP, I traded trend lines break, (flags, head and shoulder, and cup and a handle).

What did you learn from the competition? Honestly, the biggest thing for me was is that I never traded only during market open hours, I am used to trading in pre-market mostly which is great because now I am comfortable with both, I also struggled with being super disciplined, and I learned that there are risk controls that you can sit in the DAS Pro platform that can help you manage your risk in a worst-case scenario.

What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition?As I have a demanding full time job, I only trade an hour or two maximum but I have been watching the markets for about 5 years now so I am pretty comfortable identifying patterns.

What kind of mistakes did you make?When I start using/exploring the risk control tools that DAS Trader Pro has, I missed used one and didn’t set a stop on the position and I went to work and I came back to find out that I was about 13,000 negative, so it took a week to recover but at least know. And I also double check everything again.

Did you feel you were successful during this competition? I think so, although I am not happy with the mistakes that I mad so I could’ve done better but I enrolled to win and I did just that.

Are you part of a trading community? If so, which one?Yes, I’ve been though a few of them but the one that I have been with for longest and the I learn the most from is Livestream Trading with the Jeff.

Finally, is there any additional information about you, your trading and the competition overall?It’s a great experience to try and nail some of the habits that can be useful and reinforce discipline. I traded better when I wasn’t looking at others’ P&Ls, also, small and consistent always win.

Third Place: BEST 1024 – Romain

BEST 1024 – Romain

Tree Climber

Residence: France

What strategies did you employ throughout the competition?I shorted small cap extensions.

What did you learn from the competition? Manage risk to stay profitable, protect my account.

What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition?I’ve traded for the 2 years and work to be profitable.

What kind of mistakes did you make? The first day, I oversized and did not manage my risk, and then I blew up my real small account on SNTI. Because of this mistake, I worked all month on managing my risk and not oversizing.

Did you feel you were successful during this competition? Yes, I am happy with the result, I increased my account size by 50%.

Are you part of a trading community? If so, which one?No.

Finally, is there any additional information about you, your trading and the competition overall?I need to work more on risk to become profitable

First Place: BEST 0996 – Thawng

BEST 0996 – Thawng

University Student

Residence: Australia

What strategies did you employ throughout the competition?Well, I only used one strategy in the competition which is VWAP. I used VWAP as support or resistance. I usually short the ticker if the price is below and long if the price is above VWAP. If the price goes against me I cut the loss as quickly as possible. I’ve always made sure the win rate is at least 3:1 ratio because as you can see in my result my winning rate is only about 35%.

What did you learn from the competition? I’ve learnt my trading behaviour myself, I’ve experienced that if I’ve competed with other traders, my result is going slow, so I make sure to only focus on my results, and not to try to win too big. I remembered at one point I went down from about 9k to red in the total P/L ‘cos I’m aiming to win too big.

What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition? Well, as I’ve said before, I’m an active simulator trading about one year.

What kind of mistakes did you make? The most mistake I’ve made, same in trading simulator as well, is not cutting the lost quickly. Like hoping the price section will come back to my favour. So for me cutting the lost quickly is the vital part of my strategy.

Did you feel you were successful during this competition? I would say yeah, I’ve come to this competition very confident to apply my strategy in this competition.

Are you part of a trading community? If so, which one? No, I’m not part of any trading community. For me, the best teacher for trading is screen time in real time, watching the price action, and reading the tap. I’m not really a big fan of trading courses and stuff.

Finally, is there any additional information about you, your trading and the competition overall? I wanna say thank you to DAS for giving me this opportunity. I think the most vital part in trading is follow the rule and get out from the trade if the price goes against us.

Second Place: BEST 1000 – David

BEST 1000 – David

What strategies did you employ throughout the competition? Trying out some long strategies and having fun with the competition. Nothing fancy.

What did you do to prepare for the competition? Preparation was done by learning about the DAS software more in depth.

What did you learn from the competition? I learned how to be more efficient with the DAS platform.

What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition? Prior experience was learning from some of the best traders in the industry through the podcast interviews.

Did you feel you were successful during this competition? Yes, the competition was fun to trade during the downtime mid day to avoid over trading real accounts.

Are you part of a trading community? The Friendly Bear Podcast trading community.

Third Place: BEST 1003 – Lazar

BEST 1003 – Lazar

NOC Engineer

Residence: Malta

What strategies did you employ throughout the competition? I was mainly focusing on short-selling overextended moves within pharmaceutical companies in small caps, trying to avoid first-day runners.

What did you do to prepare for the competition? Before the markets open, I have my own routine which is going through my data, analyzing the company’s filing, looking for red flags (higher cash burn rate, debts, potential dilution, offerings, warrants, any kind of way that they need to raise extra money.

What did you learn from the competition? My initial focus was on following my strategies and stick to my plan, and in no case enter with big positions – oversizing. During the whole competition, I had a negative day only once and that day I broke one of my rules and that was not to compete with other competitors, which led to the other important rule – not to overtrade.

What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition? I have been educating myself for several years now. I was trading with different strategies, finding which are best for me.

What kind of mistakes did you make? Did not let my winners to work, I cut profits, didn’t let my strategies develop and got out of a trade too early.

Did you feel you were successful during this competition? Yes, my focus was on the percentage of positive trades and successful trades, which I achieved. Huge earnings and first place were not my main goals.

Are you part of a trading community? If so, which one? No, I am not, but I am surrounded by people from other communities and I actively follow the scene.

First Place: BEST 559 – Mike

BEST 559 – Mike

Government Contractor/Full-Time Trader

Residence: Charlotte, NC What strategies did you employ throughout the competition? I used two main strategies: the Opening Range Breakout (ORB) and trading off of VWAP bounces. The ORB strategy got me into trouble very early on so I focused on trading smaller sizes off of VWAP with very tight stops. What did you do to prepare for the competition? My primary motivation for this competition was to learn the DAS platform because I feel that I have grown out of my current brokers platform and am looking for something new. I watched multiple videos on YouTube on system configuration and hotkey setup. I learned you can use a Stream Deck for hotkeys and found that to be particularly useful. What did you learn from the competition? Patience and waiting for the setup to occur so the stop loss could be much tighter. What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition? Prior to COVID, I would have considered myself a long term investor in companies with a good dividend. After COVID, many of my investments cut their dividend and gave me no reason to hold them any longer. I started to pursue day trading at first then moved more to Options/Swing trading later on. What kind of mistakes did you make? I have a huge problem with FOMO and chasing trades. Did you feel you were successful during this competition? Honestly, I don’t know. My profit was not that much. Are you part of a trading community? If so, which one? I am a member of Market Rebellion. Finally, is there any additional information about you, your trading and the competition overall? I think after the competition, my confidence increased and I may be ready to switch brokers to use the DAS platform.
Second Place: BEST 964 – David

BEST 964 – David

Real Estate Salesperson & Equity Trader

Residence: Philadelphia, PA What strategies did you employ throughout the competition? As indicators I relied on VWAP, Camarilla Pivot Points and other daily levels, Volume Price Analysis (VPA), Level 2, and Time & Sales. As for strategies, I focused on ‘R4 Breakouts’, ‘R4 Breakdowns’, ‘S3 to R3 Traverses’, which encompasses a personal trading strategy I’ve named “The Crucifix”, ‘R3 to S3 Traverses’, and an ‘Inside Pivot Range’ strategy. I also took a few momentum trades at the open. What did you do to prepare for the competition? I journal and review my trades every day. What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition? 3+ years focused on intra-day trading. What have you learned from the competition? To be successful in this competition, I think it’s important to focus on your own trading and not spend much time on how other competitors are trading. Stick to your playbook and stick to your rules. What kind of mistakes did you make? I didn’t always scale out of a position as I should have and failed to take profit at times. My biggest regret though is not having as much time to dedicate to the competition because of work and travel. Did you feel you were successful during this competition? Yes, but mainly because I followed the rules I had laid out for myself at the beginning of the competition. My overall aim was not to take any trades I wouldn’t have taken in my live account or relax my rules. So, by this I mean, I never traded any low float stocks, I used hard stops, and I never took a trade that risked more than 1% of my equity size. Are you part of a trading community? If so, which one? No. I’m a former member of BBT though and it’s a great learning community for traders.
Third Place: BEST 591 – Sebastián

BEST 591 – Sebastián

University Student

Residence: Lima, Peru What strategies did you employ throughout the competition? I looked for stocks that had a good rise during the week, as these could have a greater amplitude. Also, I used horizontal and diagonal supports and resistances, moving averages in charts from weeks to 15 min. With all this, I was looking for strong reaction points and take advantage of these. What did you do to prepare for the competition? I adapted my swing trading strategy for day trading. I was also attentive to different market events that could cause great volatility in some stocks. What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition? I had only traded stocks for 1 year by holding positions between 1 week and 1 month, so day trading was new for me. What have you learned from the competition? I learned that uncontrolled losing trades can spoil good profitability. What kind of mistakes did you make? Entering very risky trades where my exit point was farther from my target point. Did you feel you were successful during this competition? Of course I did. I was able to stay hopeful of the first three places until the last moment of the competition and recover from a loss in the last days. Are you part of a trading community? If so, which one? Yes, I am a member of Global Bolsa, which is a Peruvian community with investors from all over the world. Finally, is there any additional information about you, your trading and the competition overall? Adapting to a day trading environment was very challenging, this competition really helped me control emotions and losses. I hope I can participate in other editions of this great competition.
First Place: BEST 536 – Luka

BEST 536 – Luka

Student

Residence: Luxembourg

What strategies did you employ throughout the competition? Considering that the overnight positions are not allowed, I was looking to short sell the biggest runners at the daily resistance or at/around the proven sign of weakness. In less-favored scenarios, when the change of the trend has already occurred, I was looking for a bounce to open the short position. Luckily there were many opportunities for intraday shorting during the competition.

What did you do to prepare for the competition? Preparing the daily watchlist in the morning was a crucial step.

What did you learn from the competition?
Avoid the “overheated” stocks – micro and small caps with 80M, 100M or 120M+ volume the day. It is almost impossible to get the good entry due to erratic moves so they are not worth the risk.

What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition? I have been interested in capital markets, stocks and derivatives since university, but I was just recently drawn to day trading. I consider myself a beginner.

Did you feel you were successful during this competition? Yes.

Are you part of a trading community? If so, which one? No.

Finally, is there any additional information about you, your trading and the competition overall?Since I work full time, I was able to trade for one hour per day, usually at the market opening.
I took the competition seriously – as an opportunity to test my strategy and the platform. However, in the second week, most of other participants practically blew up their accounts and I basically ensured the first place. That negatively affected my discipline and motivation for the rest of the competition but I am happy that I kept trading, at least one trade per day.

Third Place: BEST 9703 – Todd

BEST 970 – Todd

Accounting and Bookkeeping: Colorado Bookkeeping

Residence: Denver, CO

What strategies did you employ throughout the competition? News and earnings-driven GAPS at the open.

What did you do to prepare for the competition? Followed earnings reports and studied the stock charts to find suitable GAPS to trade.

What did you learn from the competition? It’s not about the number of trades or the number of days in the month one trades; but trading high-quality setups.

What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition? My first experience was in Chicago 2002 – 2004. I was part of a Prop trading group. We used a strategy that scanned NYSE Open Book. Then in Denver 2013 – 2015 with Affinity Trading after taking their courses.

Did you feel you were successful during this competition? YES!

Are you part of a trading community? If so, which one? No

Finally, is there any additional information about you, your trading and the competition overall? I had to take a break for most of the competition to spend time with my mom and family. My mom passed away mid month. I only traded one day and it was really the only day of the month that I felt mentally ready. I learned a good lesson during my previous times I traded to not trade on days you were not 100% or close to it; mentally, physically and done your homework. Better to miss an opportunity than to miss the money!

First Place: BEST 513 – Michael

BEST 513 – Michael

Student

Residence: Moreno Valley, CA


What strategies did you employ throughout the competition? Throughout the competition, I stuck to one strategy, which was the ABCD pattern. I traded stocks that were gapping 2% (mid-large cap) or above using fixed risk hotkeys.


What did you do to prepare for the competition? Before the competition started, I did a few things to help me prepare. For example, I watched webinars on trading psychology that BearBullTraders provided. Along with that, I made a specific rulebook for the competition. Lastly, I switched to fixed risk hotkeys because it allowed me to be more organized and disciplined.


What did you learn from the competition? While participating in the competition, I learned that risk management is critical. If it were not for my style of risk management, I would not have won. To add on, I learned how to control my emotions by distracting myself while in a trade. For example, while in a trade, I would watch a movie. This prevented me from getting out of a trade prematurely, and it also kept my anxiety in check.


What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition? Before joining the competition, I had eight months of experience in SIM. I used the competition as a pre-requisite for going live because I wanted to see how I would trade when I had something to lose or gain. The competition incorporated commissions, which made it realistic and, in my opinion intimidating in a productive way. The aggressive profile for using very volatile stocks.


Did you feel you were successful during this competition? YES! However, this was not because I won. I felt successful because this competition diagnosed all of my unhealthy trading habits. For example, while preparing for the competition, I often took bad trades with little to no strategy. I would often lie to myself and say that “this will not happen when the competition starts.” Unfortunately, that was not the truth. The first week of the competition, I noticed that I was taking bad trades with no strategy. I then realized that discipline starts in simulation, and I must take trading seriously no matter the context. Since the competition, I have started trading live and have not had a red day thus far.


Are you part of a trading community? If so, which one? BearBull Traders Community


Finally, is there any additional information about you, your trading and the competition overall?Lastly, I want to tell new traders that joining this competition should be a pre-requisite before going live. As mentioned above, this competition has shortened my learning curve dramatically. As a new trader, my goal for this competition was not to come in the last place. It is safe to say that I exceeded my expectations. My advice would be to take the competition seriously and do not be intimidated. You may surprise yourself. After all, you get what you put into it.

Third Place: BEST 523 – Enrique

BEST 523 – Enrique

System Engineer and BI and Data Science Specialist

Residence: Lima, Peru


What strategies did you employ throughout the competition? I’m bullish in the medium and long term. I use technical analysis identifying the four stages of stock price movement. This time I used breakouts following the trend.


What did you do to prepare for the competition? To adapt the strategy to the Intraday and learn about the platform.


What did you learn from the competition? It was a great experience. To Intraday you have to be very fast (timeframes 1-5 minutes) and be focused on fulfilling the conditions of your strategy. For this type of trading I would like to automate the strategy.


What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition? I make investments in the medium and long term.


What kind of mistakes did you make? The aggressive profile for using very volatile stocks.


Did you feel you were successful during this competition? Absolutely, I learned a lot about Intraday and It reinforces the idea to automate the strategy.


Are you part of a trading community? If so, which one? Yes, I am part of a great community of investors in Perú: Global Bolsa.

Finally, is there any additional information about you, your trading and the competition overall?It was a great experience to me. I’m currently working on automating my strategies (Machine Learning for trading).

Second Place: BEST 964 – David

BEST 964 – David

Real Estate Salesperson & Equity Trader

Residence: From Dublin, Ireland originally but living in Philadelphia, USA


What strategies did you employ throughout the competition? I look for 1 and 5 min. ORBs and keep track of stocks that are getting a lot of volume and making parabolic moves that I can potentially short or go long after they become really extended from the 9EMA on a 5 min. chart. I also have a personal strategy that I call ‘The Crucifix’ (because of the way it looks on my charts) that I look to execute usually from 9.45 to 10.45 am. This is my main strategy and it involves having the Parabolic SAR technical indicator on my charts. Lastly, I keep a very close eye on volume, daily and pre-market levels, level 2, and order flow for all my trades.


What did you do to prepare for the competition? I journal and review my trades every day. I also like to periodically reference ‘A Complete Guide to Volume Price Analysis’ by Anna Coulling. I’ve read her book several times and feel it’s been instrumental to my progress as a trader. As for dealing with the psychological aspect of trading, I recommend a book that’s a well-known favorite among traders, ‘Trading in the Zone’ by Mark Douglas.


What did you learn from the competition? To be successful in this competition I think it’s important to focus on your own trading and not spend much time on how well (or poorly) other traders are doing. It’s also crucial to keep your “revenge” trading to a minimum. Keep your losses small and live to trade another day.


What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition? I’ve spent the last 3 years trading in both a sim and live account.


What kind of mistakes did you make? I over-traded at times and racked up a lot of commission and ECN fees that turned an otherwise profitable day upside down. I also traded a few low float stocks, and despite being largely successful, I would not normally touch these stocks in my live account because of their volatility.

Did you feel you were successful during this competition? Overall, I was pleased with my performance throughout the competition but each day in the markets is an education and there were several trades I wish I had been more patient with and had scaled out differently


Are you part of a trading community? If so, which one? Yes, I’m a member of the Bear Bull Traders (BBT) community.


Finally, is there any additional information about you, your trading and the competition overall? I really recommend this competition to serious traders because I think it’s the closest, feeling-wise, to trading in a live account and I believe it helps you grow as a trader and become more disciplined. Thank you for the opportunity to participate!

Third Place: BEST 470 – Edgard

BEST 470 – Edgard

Administration and Finance Manager

Residence: I am from Peru and I live in the city of Lima in Peru.


What strategies did you employ throughout the competition? Basically use technical analysis and study of stock cycles (Dow Theory). Only trade stocks that were in cycle two and increased in value by more than 15% the previous week.


What did you do to prepare for the competition? Read the global economic news and watch out for rumors and news from publicly traded companies.


What did you learn from the competition? It is a competition that requires you to control your emotions since we must negotiate every day and I understood that we should only let ourselves be carried away by the market and not be against it.


What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition?I have 6 months of experience in the stock market, I usually like to make investments in the medium and long term.


What kind of mistakes did you make? At times I couldn’t control my impatience to trade and at other times I was against the market.


Are you part of a trading community? If so, which one? To invest in the USA, I am currently part of a community of investors in Peru called Comunidad Global Bolsa.


Finally, is there any additional information about you, your trading and the competition overall? I am very happy to have participated and I invite other people to participate to enjoy this beautiful experience.

First Place: BEST 453 – Ryan

BEST 453 – Ryan

Senior VFX Artist at a Vancouver Animation studio

Residence: Vancouver, Canada   What strategies did you employ throughout the competition? Everyday, I pick my top 3 gappers (mid-large cap) to trade its momentum move at the open. and during the day I wait for a good opportunity to short the top of some Low Cap stocks with over extended parabolic moves and hold them overnight.   What did you do to prepare for the competition? I scan heavy movers and check which one has real volume that can move and or reverse heavy the next day.   What did you learn from the competition? To always set realistic weekly goal, be patient and wait for the right trading opportunity.   What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition? I have 2 years of experience in day trading the market open. and an occasional swing trader since 2010   What kind of mistakes did you make? Not as aggressive as others and going all in buying power on a position instead of going in portions.   Did you feel you were successful during this competition? Not at all, My aim was to make 2% profit everyday, but It was very challenging. That’s why I decided to change my trading style on week 3.   Are you part of a trading community? If so, which one? Yes! Im with Andrew Aziz at BBT BearBull Traders Community. Go and check them out!   Finally, is there any additional information about you, your trading and the competition overall? I’m back posting my daily recap in Youtube, twitter, and Instagram. Please don’t forget to follow me!
Second Place: BEST 458 – Miguel

BEST 458 – Miguel

Economist and a Business Financial Consultant

Residence: Lima, Peru   What strategies did you employ throughout the competition? The strategy I used was to structure an investment portfolio of 3 to 4 shares, use Beta (B) to measure the degree of volatility of each share; 2 of which were less volatile (which benefitted the portfolio) and 2 with higher volatility and risk, looking for high returns in the short-term. Likewise, I focused on more dynamic sectors such as technology, consumption, mining and other higher risk sectors such as the biotechnology sector.   What did you do to prepare for the competition? I enjoy reading the news and being informed about social and economic situations domestically and around the world. Along with my reading, I used technical analysis and reviewed which stage of the stock cycle each stock I invested in was in to minimize my risk. To always set realistic weekly goal, be patient and wait for the right trading opportunity.   What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition? I have had experience in buying/selling shares of the Lima Stock Exchange several years ago for my personal savings. This is my first experience with the US stock market and with the DAS Trader system.   What have you learned from the competition? To have good results you have to be a balanced, methodical person, handle emotional intelligence very well, and be very patient.   What kind of mistakes did you make? I made some mistakes due to being impatient at the beginning and the last day (07/31) when I did not follow the strategy I used throughout the competition that made me lose 1st place.   Did you feel you were successful during this competition? I am very happy with the performance made these 4 weeks, I thank DAS Trader, NASDAQ and the other sponsors for this fantastic opportunity.   Are you part of a trading community? If so, which one? I am part of the Global Stock Market Community.   Finally, is there any additional information about you, your trading and the competition overall? It was very interesting to learn and utilize the DAS Trader system, which was very user friendly and helpful as an investor. I hope to return in the future to compete and improve my results.
Third Place: BEST 461 – Cesar

BEST 461 – Cesar

Operations Manager of two restaurants

Residence: Australia   What strategies did you employ throughout the competition? I mostly used 1 Min ORB, 5 Min ORB. ABCDs but I was watching closely $AAL, $WIMI, $MRNA because they were very extended on the daily and I was waiting for my opportunity to short them.   What did you do to prepare for the competition? I have been trading on a beginner level for 8 months, I would say that I have read A LOT especially technical analysis and watched recaps, taking notes and learning from other traders of my community. To always set realistic weekly goal, be patient and wait for the right trading opportunity.   What kind of experience did you have with trading prior to joining the competition? I joined Bear Bull Traders 8 months ago. Everything I have learned I did it in this community. I was in SIM for three months and then I jumped to a live account.   What have you learned from the competition? To believe in yourself. to plan a trade and trade a plan. I would say that this competition taught me the importance of being patient and wait for your setup to execute your strategy.   What kind of mistakes did you make? The biggest mistake I made was paying attention to what other traders were doing. I wanted to win the competition so badly that I overtraded and gave profits back.   Did you feel you were successful during this competition? I think we all were successful in this competition. This is because we learned every day how to survive the market and compare our performance with other traders around the world with different strategies and mindset. In my particular case, I can say that I am a better trader now, more knowledgable and patient which is key for trading. I will count that as a success.   Are you part of a trading community? If so, which one? I am part of a community called Bear Bull Traders. This community has helped me in my trading beyond what I have ever imagined. Its moderators are one of a kind and Andrew is a great inspiration. Actually, I have two anecdotes about my community during the competition. 1) I was about to quit the competition but BBT now has a Spanish section and those members encouraged me to continue in my pursuit for the first place. 2) The last day of the competition Ryan PDT (who was the winner) and I were chatting because we are part of the same community. We were congratulating each other for our performance. He closed his platform and wished me the best because he had to work. What a great guy!!! that is the kind of community we have in BBT   Finally, is there any additional information about you, your trading and the competition overall? I believe this kind of competition motivates new traders to be good traders and experienced traders to be better. Trading from Australia is not easy when you want to win a competition like this. The time difference can hit you badly. When other traders are fresh just starting their days, traders in Australia are exhausted from a long day after work. However, the motivation to be able to be interviewed by Mike DiGioia and Jill Malandrino and have the opportunity to see all the activity in New York gives you the extra energy needed to keep pushing your self as I did.
First Place: BEST 350 – Oleg

BEST 350 – Oleg

Restaurant server at Amici30A Italian Kitchen

Residence: United States

Strategies Used/Additional Information: I’m originally from Moldova, but I’ve been living in the U.S. for the last 8 years. I used a number of strategies throughout the competition that I have learned over the past 3 years from Andrew Aziz of Bear Bull Traders.

I started digging into trading in August 2017. Took some online courses after what went live in January 2018. In 5 months, blew up about 6 small accounts summing 30k USD in losses. Went back to sim since may 2018 until now, still trading in sim to gain experience and confidence. Now after winning this competition, I am thinking of going live again.


What did you learn from the competition? To win a competition you shouldn’t be focused on being in first places or win it, instead you should focus on your trading and do the best you can in terms of following rules, risk management and everything else a successful trading requires.


What kind of mistakes did you make? I was still keeping an eye on the ranking leader board which some times made me break my rules just to be first. I think if I wouldn’t check that, I would still finish the competition first with less profits but definitely with less riskier trading. Kept my losers over max loss.

Second Place: BEST 372 – Simon

BEST 372 – Simon

EQUITY & OPTIONS TRADER

Residence: Worcester, U.K.

Strategies Used/Additional Information:I look primarily at technical and fundamental analysis (SEC Filings – Shelf registration & dilution), focusing mainly on short-selling overextended moves (above 30%) without any major pullbacks, with above average volume, and volatility which will provide greater ranges, and improved liquidity. I tend not to short any stock that is up too much on the first day, or else you run the risk of being short-squeezed. If I can I will wait on day 2 for a gap down/panic pop/first red day short. The key is to find entry points that will offer low risk/high reward, risking $1 for every $3 you expect to make, this is achieved by observing support and resistance levels, with great emphasis towards level 2/time & sales for confirmation.


For preparation before the markets open, I like to analyse the company’s filings looking for any short-term debt & operating costs, and how much capital the company needs to run (high burn rate/cash equivalents), especially pharmaceutical stocks as they seem to run on parabolic moves with FDA approval. The key to many of these companies is to find out how many shares they have outstanding, offerings, warrants and convertible notes, basically bonds or corporate debts the company sold to investors and funds when they have tried to raise money. When the note matures, these debts have to be paid, whenever the notes are converted into common stock, this releases more shares into the open market, the stock drops significantly – sign of dilution, and a great opportunity for a short trader to take advantage.

Third Place: BEST 376 – Jaime

BEST 376 – Jaime

Sales Manager

Residence: Chicago, IL

Strategies Used/Additional Information:: I’ve been studying the markets and paper trading for about 2 years now. For the competition, I focused on momentum trades off key market levels and reversal trades. I tested strategies for a few weeks leading up to the competition using the DAS Trader replay mode, which I love!


What did you learn from the competition? The competition was a great way to familiarize myself with the DASTRADER platform – It was the closest I came to trading a real account – mentally. I felt the pressure and need to be successful and I was able to work through that psychologically.


What kind of mistakes did you make? Trading outside of my strategy on the final day of the competition and over trading at times throughout the competition.


Did you feel you were successful during this competition? Yes! I was truly excited about my performance and the results were far greater than I expected. I was not shooting for a big PNL or to win the competition. My goal was to be able to display consistency in my trading. I wanted to play the account as realistic as possible for my level of experience.

First Place (Options): BEST 120 – Roberto

BEST 120 – Roberto

Member of the Commercial Community: Global Bolsa (GLBolsa)

Residence: Peru Strategies Used/Additional Information: Real strategies that I use (and teach my students: Global Bolsa Community, GLBolsa) in my investments in the New York Stock Exchange, based on the study of stock market cycles (Dow Theory) applied to the prices of the stocks. Due to the duration of the competition I used few days trading in stocks, ETFs and Options. Technical Analysis with necessary base of medium and long term uptrend. My preference shares of greater capitalization. I am Director of Global Bolsa: www.global-bolsa.com I have 15 years as an investor in the New York Stock Exchange. I have created the Global Bolsa Community (GLBolsa), made up of all my former students that we invested in the New York Stock Exchange. Our objectives: Fellowship and Profitability. My Awards:
    • USA: First Place, # 1 Best Trader Competition. NASDAQ- Das Inc., October 2019
    • USA: First Place, # 1 Best Trader Competition. NASDAQ- Das Inc., June 2019
    • PERU: First Place, Stock Market Investment Challenge Lima Stock Exchange 2017.
    • PERU: First Place, Stock Market Investment Challenge Lima Stock Exchange 2009.
    • SPAIN: Member of IEATEC (Spanish Institute of technical and quantitative analysts).
I believe that in order to be a good investor, comprehensive training based on basic human virtues is required. A virtuous person with good moral training obtains happiness in the various ventures of his life; therefore they will also have them in their stock investments.
First Place (Stocks): BEST 251- David

BEST 251 – David

20 years Experience in Compliance for a Broker/Dealer and Investment Adviser Firm

Residence: United States Strategies Used/Additional Information: I started day trading in January 2019 after reading Andrew Aziz’s book “How to Day Trade for a Living”. I am also a member of the Bear Bull Traders community (BBT). For the competition I used technical analysis and momentum strategies on mainly stocks gapping up or down with a news catalyst. In addition, I used the competition to experiment with day trading options and swing trading options on large cap stocks and SPY.
Second Place: BEST 250 – Guy

BEST 250 – Guy

Financial Advistor

Residence: London, England Strategies Used/Additional Information: I am 25 and a Trainee Financial Adviser living and working in London. I have been interested in financial markets for around 3 years, having first studied Economics at Oxford Brookes University. My goal for the competion was to test the strategies and knowledge I have acquired over the past couple of years for the first time in a live environment. I predominantly focused on finding momentum reversals in small cap stocks and the competition provided me with an opportunity to really test my risk management and discipline.
Third Place: BEST 241 – Aju

BEST 241 – Aju

Computer Support Specialist

Residence: United States Strategies Used/Additional Information: I started trading nearly 2 years ago as a part-time trader and mainly focus on strategies like momentum trading, reversals, etc. I pick stocks for the day using gap up /down scanners and analyze the news behind the move and then mark my technical levels of various support/ resistance from daily/ weekly. And mainly for my entry decisions and exits, I use multiple time frame analysis and level 2 pieces of information at those previously marked technical levels. I wanted to use the BestTrader challenge to simulate my trading style for my real account. So implemented my actual trading setups, risk management, and rules. This Challenge experience was a great tool to know more about the DAS platform and I really appreciate for all supporting and educational information out there.
First Place (Swing Trading): BEST 011 – Robert

BEST 011 – Robert

Business Administrator

Residence: Peru Strategies Used/Additional Information: I Commercialize in the short term with Call Options, due to the duration of 1 month of the contest. I Prefer values of high market capitalization and SP 500. I used short-term Technical Analysis.
Second Place: BEST 049 – Karthi

BEST 049 – Karthi

15 year’s as an engineer in the I.T. industry

Residence: Germany Strategies Used/Additional Information: I started learning Daytrading by reading Andrew Aziz’ Book ‘How to Daytrade for a Living”. Decided to take it seriously and joined Andrew’s BearBullTraders (BBT) community in Sep 2018 (10 months before). I spent 7 months in DAS Simulator, and went Live in Apr”19 (under PDT rule). I am planning to fund my account fully in July. I wanted use the BestTrader challenge to simulate my Live month. So implemented my actual Trading Rules, Setups and Risk management. Hence I started very slow (small share sizes) in the first week and slowly ramped it up. In the final week, I had 3 max loss days and so I ramped down again. It is all about protecting my capital and not blow out the account. That’s what BBT community is all about. The Lead Moderators Andrew, Brian and other moderators teach and encourage Consistent Trading. Like Andrew always says Day trading is a Marathon.
Third Place: BEST 080 – Aaradhana

BEST 080 – Aaradhana

Service Delivery Team Lead for Mimecast, Australia

Residence: Australia Strategies Used/Additional Information: My education is in information technology but my experience and passion drives me towards finance management. After working for Credit Suisse as a trade floor support analyst, I started reading and getting to know more about trades and equities terms. Later in that year, during my holiday in India, I started reading finance management book. This was the start of a love affair with long- term investing and finance management. Outside of reading and researching I spend many hours fighting with bad guys in cloud space as she works as a Service Delivery team lead for cyber security firm called Mimecast in Australia. I believe in possibilities and not losing your sleep over investments. It’s not just what you earn is important, but how you save by avoiding bad choices and invest long term is equally important to grow your portfolio and wealth over the long term. My strategy is very simple and emphasis on great service driven, future technology, supply/demand stocks and improving emotional intelligence. I really enjoyed and appreciate all DAS ‘s learning videos, support and mainly training discipline tips. This experience was a great confidence booster and leap forward in right direction.

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