The Striker Report - gold standard for objective trading research

Don Wolf

System Developer

Program(s) Developed: Alpha Blend Trading System

Interviewed by John F. Gallwas, Founder of Striker Securities, Inc.

Mr. Wolf (Wolf Systems) is a professional trader who has computerized his personal trading systems he can also lease his proprietary trading systems to other traders. He has years of experience working with a Chicago-based Futures Commission Merchant (FMC) and learned about Striker close of 2014. In this month we sat down with Mr. Wolf to examine the success of Alpha Blend live at Striker since October 2014 and currently up +46.15% a/o March 5, 2015 (all results are actual and include commission, fees, and monthly subscription).

John F. Gallwas: Tell us about yourself?

Don Wolf: I have spent the last 30 years successfully trading and developing systems. I started trading Silver and Gold while in school and was so successful I decided to bypass University. I concentrated on creating automated trading systems using a math and algorithmic base. I soon partnered with family to profitably trade several systems before moving out on my own. It is only recently that I have decided to offer systems for others participation. Trading is my life's work and I take great pride in my systems.

John F. Gallwas: Lately, we have interviewed a lot of Europeans, and it is nice to chat with an American where did you grow up how did you develop an interest in futures trading?

Don Wolf: I grew up in the New York City suburbs, my Father and his close friend in the Banking Industry mentored my early interest in trading and the mathematical logic behind it. It was through their encouragement I began system trading using short term cycles in Gold and Silver on the COMEX. I was so encouraged and enthused by that first trading experience that I decided to make a career of system trading.

John F. Gallwas: Alpha Blend trades a wide range of commodities, is the system designed to take advantage of more volatility once the Fed reverses policy?

Don Wolf: Yes. Alpha Blend is a short term trend following system using volatility and because it is applied to a diversified group of instruments, it will take advantage of Fed policy changes as well as a wide range of market moving events across many sectors.Because Alpha Blend takes both long and short trades with a fluctuating bias and uses a dynamic portfolio selector, the system by design is adept at capturing market moving events.

John F. Gallwas: Is your system a bull or bear trending system does it have a bias?

Don Wolf: The system is designed to capture both short-term bull and bear trends. The bias changes per instrument based on the short-term trend and adjusts accordingly. In the long run the bias will smooth out.

John F. Gallwas: Please explain your use of money management and stops as we notice losses tend to be small and controlled.

Don Wolf: Keeping the losses small as possible is the goal. To control risk, stops are always used and a trailing stop near breakeven is also sometimes employed. When the trade survives the stop, it's always exited on the close and never held overnight. Alpha Blend also uses a sophisticated portfolio selector each day to maximize trade selection. The goal is to be in the right trade at the right time.

John F. Gallwas: While Alpha Blend is listed as a "swing" system it seems to be more of a day system nearly flat every day. Is it really at heart a "day trading system"?

Don Wolf: Yes it's a day trading system with a very short term swing element to it, with the idea of trying to capture just a portion of a trend.

John F. Gallwas: What do the back tested draw downs tell?

Don Wolf: I feel that you can reduce draw downs and the severity of them by diversifying across multiple sectors/instruments as well as the ability to go long or short. This is part of the how and why Alpha Blend is structured. The use of vigorous stops and a robust portfolio selection model help to limit draw downs as well. By exiting as a daytrade, risk is further reduced.

John F. Gallwas: Tell us about Absolute Alpha is this a sister system to Alpha Blend or completely different in nature and design?

Don Wolf: Actually the nature of the systems is very similar, but the time frames of variables used and trade entries/exits differ. Absolute Alpha differs mainly by trying to capture a longer term trend by taking the trade overnight and exiting during the next session. On the other hand, Alpha Blend is a day trading system that exits the same day. Though the systems are similar, they are not necessarily correlated so they can counterbalance as well as complement each other.

John F. Gallwas: Will you be starting any new systems this year?

Don Wolf: In my thirty years of trading, I have a portfolio of highly successful systems that I will be testing, adapting and modifying in the coming year. I will be releasing a new counter-trend system in the coming weeks. I also plan to release several new swing, trend, and reversal systems, which will compliment my current system offerings.

This interview is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be a solicitation of any kind. Trade only with risk capital. The risk of trading can be substantial and each investor and/or trader must consider whether trading systems are a suitable investment.