Active cryptocurrency day trading can be an exciting way to try and grow your crypto portfolio rapidly, but it also comes with substantial risks. In this comprehensive guide, I‘ll share techniques for attempting to make $100 or more per day trading crypto using Coinbase Pro and analyzing charts with TradingView.
Getting Started with Crypto Day Trading
Cryptocurrency prices are highly volatile compared to stocks and forex, with large price swings of 5-10% in a single day being common even among the top coins like Bitcoin and Ethereum. This volatility opens up opportunities for traders to try and profit from short-term price action.
However, crypto trading is also extremely high risk. Exchanges like Coinbase Pro allow traders to use leverage to open larger positions, meaning you can make bigger gains but also suffer bigger losses if the price moves against you. It‘s critical to only risk capital you can afford to lose.
With crypto market volatility, skilled traders have the potential to score wins and hit daily profit targets like $100, although there is no guarantee of profits. Consistent success requires an effective trading strategy, risk management rules, and refined technical analysis skills.
Minimum Capital
To effectively day trade cryptocurrency and have a chance at hitting $100 per day profits, I recommend having at least $2,500 to start. This helps ensure you can trade coins with adequate volume and allows you to properly manage risks.
Coin Selection
I generally recommend trading coins in the top 30 by market capitalization. These tend to have the highest trading volumes and daily price movement, both critical factors in profiting from short-term trades.
Some top coins to consider are Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Binance Coin (BNB), Cardano (ADA), Ripple (XRP), and Polkadot (DOT). You can always explore less-known small cap coins, but liquidity and spreads may make profitability more difficult.
Exchanges
For this guide, I‘ll focus on making $100/day using Coinbase Pro for executing trades and TradingView for technical analysis.
Introduction to Coinbase Pro
Coinbase Pro is a popular crypto trading platform suited for active trading and charting. It‘s operated by Coinbase, one of the largest and most trusted cryptocurrency exchanges.
Some key features of Coinbase Pro:
- Low trading fees of 0.5% or less
- Ability to place market, limit and stop orders
- Built-in charting tools and indicators
- Available funding options like bank transfers and wires
- Strong security and insurance protections
Coinbase Pro also offers up to 5x leverage trading for eligible users to amplify potential gains and losses. This increases risks substantially, so use leverage judiciously if you choose to turn it on.
Getting Started
- Create a Coinbase account if you don‘t already have one
- Navigate to pro.coinbase.com and log in with your Coinbase credentials
- Complete identity verification if not already done
- Deposit USD or crypto
Once funded, you can trade the various coins and token pairs on Coinbase Pro.
Introduction to TradingView
TradingView is one of the most popular platforms for viewing crypto charts, technical analysis, and trade ideas. Here are some key features:
- Real-time price charts with multiple indicators
- Ability to save chart layouts and indicators
- Social community of traders to learn from
- Paper trading to test strategies risk-free
While TradingView doesn‘t support direct crypto trading, it‘s an invaluable tool for charting and analyzing potential trades.
Getting Started
- Go to TradingView.com and create a free account
- Search the coin ticker like "BTCUSD" to pull up Bitcoin price charts
- Add desired indicators by clicking "Indicators" in top menu
- Customize timeframes on bottom toolbar of chart
Now let‘s examine some potential trades using Coinbase Pro and TradingView together.
Technical Analysis with TradingView
Technical indicators are mathematical calculations applied to price charts to help traders make decisions. Some popular indicators for crypto trading include:
RSI (Relative Strength Index) – Shows overbought/oversold levels and divergences
MACD (Moving Average Convergence Divergence) – Trading crossovers based on exponential moving averages
Bollinger Bands – Price envelopes showing support and resistance zones
Let‘s walk through using the RSI and MACD indicators on TradingView to identify and profit from a hypothetical Bitcoin swing trade.
Note: Charts and profit calculations are for illustrative purposes only.
Here‘s how this analysis helps time the hypothetical BTC trade:
1) The RSI dips below 30, entering oversold territory indicating a short-term bottom in price
2) The MACD line crossover suggests building upside trading momentum
3) We buy BTC at around $22,800 right after MACD crossover
4) About 18 hours later, BTC rallies roughly 9% to $24,800 where we sell for nice short-term profit
Our hypothetical profit would be 9% x $2,500 = $225 from this single BTC swing trade in under a day. Not bad!
Let‘s break down the key steps:
- Use indicators like RSI and MACD to assess extremes and momentum
- Identify trading opportunities based on signals
- Set orders on Coinbase Pro to enter and exit positions
- Manage trade until completion
With BTC‘s daily volatility, you can find opportunities like this fairly frequently. Other major coins can exhibit similar sizable swings to leverage as well.
Now over longer periods, even capturing relatively small 1-3% daily gains can compound your account substantially.
The Power of Compounding Gains
Trading smaller daily gains consistently, compounding the profits, and avoiding large losses is key for long-term growth.
Let‘s say we start with $2,500 and make just 1% per day…pretty conservative:
- Day 1: $2,500 gains 1% = $25 profit
- Day 2: $2,525 gains 1% = $25.25
- Day 3: $2,550 gains 1% = $25.51
Continuing this pattern for a year with no losses, the $2,500 grows to over $134,000!
However, almost no traders capture smooth returns for 365 straight days. Expect periodic losses. It‘s maintaining strong risk management rules that lets you endure the inevitable losses and stick to the long-term plan.
My point is with leveraging small daily gains using Coinbase and TradingView, compounding can rapidly grow accounts. Your actual returns depend greatly on your trading talent, risk tolerance, and capital.
Next, let’s discuss some risk management guidelines for sustainably trading crypto.
Managing Risks in Crypto Trading
Like any market trading, solid risk principles are vital for success and longevity. Here are some tips:
Set Stop Losses
Always use stop market or stop limit orders to exit losing trades at predefined levels. This caps and quantifies the downside.
Take Profits
Don’t get greedy sitting through pullbacks. Consider taking partial or full profits at resistance levels or after hitting goals.
Limit Position Sizes
Even if using leverage, risk only 1-4% of your account per trade (less with leverage). This ensures you can absorb some losses and not get wiped out.
Diversify Strategies
Apply different trade timeframes and indicators rather than relying only on one setup. Monitor portfolio correlations.
Withdraw Profits
Periodically take chips off the table from your trading stack so open positions represent house money.
Track Stats
Objectively tracking metrics like profit factor, win percentage and risk-reward ratios is vital for assessing if strategies are working.
Stay Disciplined
Don’t break pre-defined rules due to emotions. Mechanical trading execution takes practice but is key to enduring volatile crypto markets.
By mastering personal risk management tailored to your goals and risk tolerance, you stand a much better chance at consistently profiting from short-term crypto trading.
Final Tips & Next Steps
I hope this guide has been helpful presenting an introduction to day trading cryptocurrency and some methods for attempting to make $100 daily returns using Coinbase Pro and TradingView.
Of course, this entire guide has been for informational and educational purposes only. Nothing herein should be considered trading advice or a solicitation to risk capital. Please conduct additional research before attempting to trade or invest in cryptocurrencies which can be extremely volatile and lead to substantial losses.
Here are some final tips for getting started plus additional crypto trading resources:
- Start trading small to practice, learn from mistakes
- Refine chart skills analyzing past price data
- Join online trading groups to exchange ideas
- Implement trading journal for reviewing outcomes
- Consider specializing in just 1-2 cryptocurrencies
YouTube Channels:
Books:
- Mastering the Trade by John Carter
- Cryptoassets by Chris Burniske & Jack Tatar
- Candlestick Charting by Michael C. Thomsett
I wish you the best with your cryptocurrency trading endeavors. Please trade safely and continue educating yourself! Let me know if you have any other questions.