Copy trading 101
Copy NQ to MNQ: mixing mini and micro contracts across accounts
Trade NQ on the leader and MNQ on smaller accounts, or the other way round. How contract switching and multipliers work together, with examples.
Not every account should trade the same contract. A $50K evaluation may be right for MNQ while a $150K funded account takes NQ. A trade copier can do both from one leader trade.
Mini and micro in one line
For the CME equity index futures, a micro contract is one tenth of the E-mini: one MNQ moves like a tenth of one NQ, and the same goes for MES and ES, MYM and YM, M2K and RTY.
Two settings work together
- Which contract the follower trades: the leader's own, the micro, or the mini.
- How many: the leader's size times the follower's multiplier.
Switching from NQ to MNQ changes the contract, not the count. One NQ on the leader becomes one MNQ on a micro follower at ×1, which is a tenth of the exposure. To get closer to the leader's exposure, raise the multiplier.
| Leader | Follower setting | Follower trades |
|---|---|---|
| 2 NQ | Leader's contract, ×1 | 2 NQ |
| 2 NQ | Micro, ×1 | 2 MNQ |
| 2 NQ | Micro, ×5 | 10 MNQ |
| 3 MNQ | Mini, ×1 | 3 NQ |
Copying micro to mini multiplies the exposure tenfold, so size those followers with care.
Caps as a safety net
A per-follower cap on minis and on micros stops a follower from ever going above a size you chose, whatever the leader does. Set it at or below your firm's contract limit for that account.
Where Replica fits
Each Replica follower trades the leader's contract, the Micro or the Mini, with a multiplier from ×0.1 to ×5, rounded up and never below 1, and optional Max Minis and Max Micros caps. If a follower cannot trade the matching contract, it skips that trade and the skip is logged. See micro and mini contracts and multipliers and sizing.