Nija

NIJA Safe Small-Account Preset - Quick Start Guide

🎯 Overview

The NIJA Safe Small-Account Preset is a turnkey configuration designed specifically for accounts between $20-$100. This preset provides:

✅ Independent trading support - Each account evaluates markets independently ✅ Minimal API risk - Conservative position sizing and strict limits ✅ Controlled drawdown - Multiple circuit breakers and safety features ✅ Fee optimization - Trades on lowest-fee exchanges (Kraken recommended) ✅ Beginner-friendly - Works out of the box with minimal configuration

📋 Quick Start (5 Minutes)

Step 1: Get Your API Credentials

Kraken (Recommended for $20-$100 accounts)

  1. Go to Kraken API Settings
  2. Click “Generate New Key”
  3. Enable permissions:
    • ✅ Query Funds
    • ✅ Query Open Orders & Trades
    • ✅ Query Closed Orders & Trades
    • ✅ Create & Modify Orders
    • ✅ Cancel/Close Orders
    • ❌ DO NOT enable “Withdraw Funds”
  4. Copy your API Key and Private Key

Step 2: Configure Your Environment

  1. Copy the preset file to .env: 
    cp .env.small_account_preset .env
  2. Edit .env and add your credentials: 
    nano .env  # or use any text editor
  3. Add your Kraken credentials: 
    KRAKEN_PLATFORM_API_KEY=your-api-key-here
KRAKEN_PLATFORM_API_SECRET=your-private-key-here
  4. Save and close the file

Step 3: Start Trading

# Start the bot
./start.sh

# Or if using Docker
docker-compose up -d

That’s it! The bot will now trade using the safe small-account preset.

🛡️ Safety Features (Always Active)

Automatic Protection

Burn-Down Mode

If you hit 2 consecutive losses:

💰 Position Sizing (Auto-Scaled)

Your position sizes automatically adjust based on your balance:

Account Balance Position Size Example Trade Value
$20 - $30 2% $0.40 - $0.60
$30 - $50 3% $0.90 - $1.50
$50 - $75 4% $2.00 - $3.00
$75 - $100 5% $3.75 - $5.00

Minimum: $5.00 per trade (for fee efficiency) Maximum: $10.00 per trade (risk protection)

🎯 Profit Targets & Stop-Loss

Take-Profit Ladder

Stop-Loss Protection

📊 Trading Frequency

This prevents over-trading and keeps fees manageable.

🏦 Exchange Recommendations

✅ Kraken (RECOMMENDED)

✅ OKX (ALTERNATIVE)

Preset Default: Kraken is used by default. Coinbase is automatically disabled for accounts under $100.

🔄 Copy Trading Mode

If you have multiple user accounts that should copy the platform account:

Setup User Accounts

  1. Create user config file: config/users/retail_kraken.json 
    {
  "users": [
    {
      "user_id": "jane_smith",
      "allocation_pct": 1.0,
      "max_position_pct": 0.05
    }
  ]
}
  2. Add user credentials to .env: 
    KRAKEN_USER_JANE_API_KEY=user-api-key
KRAKEN_USER_JANE_API_SECRET=user-private-key
  3. Restart the bot

Automatic Scaling: User positions are automatically scaled based on the ratio of user balance to master balance.

Example:

📈 Trading Pairs

Allowed Pairs (Liquid majors only):

Blacklisted Pairs:

📊 Expected Performance

Conservative Estimates (Past performance ≠ future results)

Daily Target: Not applicable for small accounts. Focus on consistency.

Risk Profile:

Win Rate Goal: 50-60% (with proper 2:1 risk/reward)

Monthly Return Target: 5-15% (conservative, compounding)

🔧 Advanced Configuration

If you want to customize beyond the preset defaults, you can:

  1. Edit bot/small_account_preset.py directly
  2. Modify environment variables in .env
  3. Override specific settings in your startup script

Common Customizations:

# Adjust position sizes
MIN_TRADE_PERCENT=0.02  # 2% minimum
MAX_TRADE_PERCENT=0.05  # 5% maximum

# Adjust risk limits
MAX_CONCURRENT_POSITIONS=2  # Max 2 positions

# Adjust balances
MINIMUM_TRADING_BALANCE=20.0  # Min $20 to trade
MIN_CASH_TO_BUY=5.0  # Min $5 per trade

🚨 Troubleshooting

Bot Won’t Start Trading

Check balances:

# View your current balance
grep -A 5 "Balance:" logs/nija.log

Check API credentials:

Positions Not Opening

Common causes:

Check logs:

tail -f logs/nija_apex.log

Trades Losing Money

First steps:

  1. Check if burn-down mode is active (after 2 losses)
  2. Review entry signals (need 5/6 confirmations)
  3. Verify stop-loss is properly set
  4. Check market conditions (high volatility?)

Circuit breakers will protect you:

📚 Additional Resources

⚠️ Important Disclaimers

Trading Risks

Regulatory Compliance

Liability

📞 Getting Help

Self-Service

  1. Check logs: logs/nija.log and logs/nija_apex.log
  2. Review documentation in repository
  3. Verify API credentials and permissions
  4. Check balance and position limits

Common Issues

Still Need Help?

✅ Success Checklist

Before you start:

You’re ready to trade safely with NIJA! 🚀

💡 Pro Tips

  1. Start Small: Begin with $50-75 to have room for 2 positions
  2. Monitor Closely: Watch your first 5-10 trades carefully
  3. Trust the System: Let stop-losses and circuit breakers protect you
  4. Be Patient: Don’t override safety limits manually
  5. Compound Slowly: Withdraw profits regularly, don’t over-leverage
  6. Use Kraken: Lowest fees for small accounts
  7. Review Daily: Check your P&L and adjust if needed

Last Updated: January 20, 2026 Version: 1.0 Preset File: bot/small_account_preset.py Environment File: .env.small_account_preset