Getting started with AvenQuant

Complete the registration form with your real first name, last name, email address and mobile number. Use your real details, because they must match your identity documents later. Choose a strong password that you do not use anywhere else, and confirm your email address using the message we send.

Then secure the account straight away by switching on two-factor sign-in with an authenticator app. It takes about two minutes and is the most valuable thing you can do for the safety of your account. Save the backup codes somewhere offline.

• Register at the account page and confirm your email
• Take the call from your personal manager, usually within 24 hours
• Switch on two-factor sign-in and store your backup codes

Tip: if a call goes to voicemail, your manager will email you to arrange another time, so check your spam folder.

The platform does not hold your assets. It works through your account at an exchange, using an API key that you create there and paste into your dashboard. You control what that key is allowed to do.

When you create the key on the exchange, allow it to read balances and to place trades, and keep withdrawal permission switched off. If the exchange lets you restrict the key to certain IP addresses, do so using the list your manager gives you. The limits on a key matter as much as the key itself, because they are what stops a leaked key from being used to take money out. Read more on the Security page.

• Create a new API key on your exchange, not an existing one you use elsewhere
• Enable reading and trading, and leave withdrawals off
• Paste the key into the dashboard and check that your balance appears

Tip: if the balance does not appear, the most common cause is a mistyped key. Delete it and create a new one instead of trying to fix it.

Here you tell the platform what to watch and when to tell you about it. Choose the trading pairs you are interested in, such as Bitcoin against the US dollar, decide which conditions should trigger an alert and switch on notifications by email. Start with a small number of pairs, because a short list is easier to understand.

Your manager will suggest a starting strategy that matches how much risk you told them you are comfortable with. Read its description, which explains in plain words what it looks for and what would make it lose money, before you activate it. You can pause it at any time.

• Select a small number of trading pairs to follow
• Choose alert conditions and notification channels
• Read the strategy description, then activate it with your manager

Tip: begin with the smallest amount your plan allows. You can add more later once you have seen how the strategy behaves in real markets.

The dashboard is the one place to see what is happening. It shows your balance, open and closed trades, the status of each strategy and a plain-language summary of recent activity. A chart shows how the balance has moved over the period you select, including the falls.

From the dashboard you can pause or resume a strategy, change alert settings, review the audit history and download statements. Get into the habit of looking once a day at first, and then as often as suits you. If something on the screen does not make sense, ask your manager. Nobody minds the question.

• Check balance, trades and strategy status
• Pause or resume strategies whenever you choose
• Review the audit history and statements regularly