Initial Balance Breakout Strategy by Bnf6082
By Bnf6082
Performance Metrics
- Author: Bnf6082
- Symbol: COMEX:GC1!
- Timeframe: 5 minutes
- Win Rate: 62.5%
- Profit Factor: 1.289
Description
Initial Balance Breakout (IBB) Trades breakouts from the Initial Balance (IB) — the price range formed between 9:30 and 10:30 ET — using a retracement entry model on major futures markets. Concept The first hour of the New York session establishes the Initial Balance. A breakout above the IB High or below the IB Low signals directional intent. Rather than chasing the breakout, the strategy waits for price to retrace back toward the IB boundary and enters at a defined pullback zone, improving the risk/reward ratio. Entry Rules - IB forms from 09:30–10:30 ET across 5-min bars - After a breakout, a limit order is placed at a configurable retracement level (default: 25% back into the IB range) - Long only if the IB High broke first (and IB Low was not violated); Short only if the IB Low broke first - Entry window closes at 15:00 ET; pending orders are cancelled if the opposite side breaks or the window expires - IB range must fall within a min/max % filter to avoid dead or extreme sessions Exit Rules - Take profit: IB High/Low ± a multiple of the IB range (default 0.5×) - Stop loss: set inside the IB range at a % of the IB size (default 60%) - Time stop: all positions closed at 15:30 ET Parameters ┌─────────────────────┬─────────────┬────────────────────────────────────────┐ │ Input │ Default │ Description │ ├─────────────────────┼─────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────┤ │ IB Window │ 09:30–10:30 │ Range formation period │ ├─────────────────────┼─────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────┤ │ Retracement % │ 25% │ Pullback entry level │ ├─────────────────────┼─────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────┤ │ Min / Max IB Size % │ 0.3% / 1.5% │ Filters low-volatility or extreme days │ ├─────────────────────┼─────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────┤ │ TP Multiplier │ 0.5× IB │ Profit target distance │ ├─────────────────────┼─────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────┤ │ Stop Loss % of IB │ 60% │ Stop distance relative to IB size │ ├─────────────────────┼─────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────┤ │ Entry Window End │ 15:00 │ No new entries after this time │ └─────────────────────┴─────────────┴────────────────────────────────────────┘