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Managed Account Strategy

QFEX launched its managed account strategy on 1 August 2026. The strategy is available on an invite-only basis to high-volume traders who have deposited at least USD 50,000 on QFEX.

Overview

The strategy is a systematic, market-neutral long/short strategy traded through QFEX perpetual futures. It is designed to target relative-value opportunities across the cross-section of markets rather than taking a directional view on the equity market. The portfolio is constructed end to end by systematic models. Signals are generated from more than 200 features spanning areas including momentum, mean reversion, volatility, relationships between markets, and liquidity. Forecasts are normalized across markets, positions are ranked and sized according to signal strength and inverse volatility, and the resulting book is neutralized to target zero net exposure and zero index beta before orders are sent. The book is closed out by 16:00 ET each day, with nothing intentionally held overnight.

Why QFEX perpetuals

QFEX perpetual futures allow long and short positions to share one cross-margined collateral pool. This means a market-neutral book can generally use capital more efficiently than an equivalent portfolio held through a traditional prime broker, where long and short legs may consume margin separately and short positions can require stock borrow. The strategy typically operates at approximately 2-4x gross notional per dollar of equity, while remaining market-neutral by construction.

Account structure

The strategy is run as a separately managed account:
  • Your collateral remains in your own QFEX account. QFEX receives trading access only and does not receive withdrawal rights.
  • Positions are transparent. You can view positions in real time, and the book is flattened each day.
  • There is no lock-up. Because the strategy holds nothing overnight, participation can be stopped within a single trading session.

Manage your account with API keys

Invited users can create a managed account, deposit from their main account, withdraw back to it, and change portfolio leverage through https://api.qfex.com. Create an API key with All accounts access, which grants the required subaccount_ops permission. Use your own key and keep its secret on your server. Fund your primary QFEX account first using programmatic deposits. Managed account funding transfers existing USD collateral from your primary account. Check GET /managed-accounts/config for the current min_funding and max_leverage: initial funding and equity after each deposit must meet the minimum, and leverage_ratio must be an integer from 1 to the maximum. Set QFEX_PUBLIC_KEY, QFEX_SECRET_KEY, and QFEX_MAIN_ACCOUNT_ID (your primary account UUID) in your environment, then run this Python example. The example assumes a minimum funding requirement of USD 50,000 and a maximum leverage of at least 3. Run the withdrawal outside managed account trading hours.
Creation returns 201 with created: true. You can also add funds with POST /managed-accounts/create and {"amount": 1000}; it returns 200 with created: false and preserves leverage. Both responses include account_id and leverage_ratio. POST /user/transfer returns 200 with an empty body. Managed account transfers must be between your main account and its managed account. Withdrawals return 409 while managed account trading is active. To withdraw externally, transfer back to the main account first, then use programmatic withdrawals. Each deposit or withdrawal call transfers money again, so check balances before retrying a timed-out request.

Historical strategy performance

The brochure for the strategy reports the following net statistics over 249 trading days from 2 September 2025 to 27 August 2026 on an unlevered book:
These figures pre-date the launch of the managed account product itself. They are based on the production model using live market data on an unlevered book and are not audited returns of a pooled investment vehicle.

Eligibility

Managed accounts are currently available only by invitation. To be eligible, a trader must:
  • be a high-volume QFEX trader; and
  • have deposited at least USD 50,000 on QFEX.
Eligibility does not by itself constitute an invitation to participate.
Past performance is not indicative of future results. Trading perpetual futures with leverage involves substantial risk of loss. This page is for informational purposes only and is not an offer to sell or a solicitation to buy any security or investment interest.