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Gino Topini sits down on the Desire To Trade podcast to share how he actually approaches markets as both a trader and a business owner. Known for preaching “don’t put all your eggs in one basket,” Gino explains why diversification across FX, U.S. stocks, and even selected crypto plays is the backbone of his approach. He talks candidly about starting with a long demo period, the psychological shock of going live, and the daily routine that lets him trade while running his company—proof that process beats hype.
In this piece, you’ll learn Gino’s swing-trading playbook: how he blends fundamentals for longer holds with technicals for shorter moves, why Fibonacci, Bollinger Bands, and MACD are his core tools, and how he pressure-tests new ideas in demo before risking real capital. You’ll also see his rules for plan-first execution, separating feelings from data, and structuring a trading window when time is tight. If you’re a newer trader who wants a clear, no-fluff path to consistency—or a busy pro looking to tighten your routine—Gino’s straight-talk blueprint will help you trade with more discipline and less stress.
Gino Topini Playbook & Strategy: How He Actually Trades
Market Universe & Timeframes
Here’s the landscape Gino focuses on and why it matters. Clarity on instruments and horizons keeps your routine tight and your risk predictable.
- Trade a diversified mix of FX majors/minors, selected U.S. equities, and only a few liquid crypto pairs.
- Default to swing timeframes: analyze on daily/4-hour; execute on 4-hour/1-hour.
- Only track 15–30 symbols at a time; archive the rest to avoid impulse scanning.
- Predefine “no-trade” hours; if you’re part-time, use two windows per day (e.g., pre-market and late U.S. session).
- Keep a weekly watchlist with a max 10 “A-setups” and remove anything that hasn’t triggered in 10 trading days.
Setup Selection: Technical Edge
This is the visual blueprint Gino relies on. Pick simple, repeatable patterns that show trend, pullback, and momentum confirmation.
- Identify trend with 50/200 EMAs; trade only in the direction of the higher-timeframe slope.
- Use Bollinger Bands for pullback context: buy near the lower band in uptrends; sell near the upper band in downtrends.
- Confirm momentum with MACD line cross plus histogram expansion; no confirmation = no entry.
- The fib retracement zone 38.2%–61.8% defines the “value area” for entries within a trend.
- Structure must be clean: higher highs/higher lows (longs) or lower highs/lower lows (shorts); skip chop.
Risk Sizing & Portfolio Construction
This is how positions fit together, so one bad trade doesn’t sink the week. Think in total portfolio heat, not just single-trade risk.
- Risk 0.25%–0.75% per trade; cap total open risk (“portfolio heat”) at 2% across all positions.
- Limit correlation: max one position per highly correlated cluster (e.g., only one USD-driven FX trade at a time).
- Position size from the stop distance: size = (account × risk%) ÷ (stop pips or $ per share).
- For equities, reduce size by 25% ahead of major earnings or skip entirely.
- Never add to losers; add only to winners after price has moved at least +0.5R with the same initial stop.
Entry Triggers & Orders
Entries are rules, not feelings. Use objective triggers and standardized orders so you don’t “negotiate” with the chart.
- Primary trigger: bullish/bearish engulfing or pin bar at the Fib zone with MACD confirmation.
- Secondary trigger: break-and-retest of a clear level; enter on the first strong close back in trend direction.
- Place stop beyond structure: for longs, a few pips/cents below the swing low or lower band; for shorts, above swing high/upper band.
- Use limit orders at the zone; if price runs away, let it go—“missed” is better than “forced.”
- Cancel unfilled orders after two full bars on your execution timeframe.
Trade Management & Exits
This is where consistency lives. Define what “done” looks like before you click buy.
- First target at +1R; move stop to breakeven once +0.8R is printed intrabar or on close.
- Trail by swing-low/high for trend trades; for faster markets, trail by 20-period ATR multiple (e.g., 1× ATR).
- Partial-out 50% at +1R; let the remainder run toward structure or a 2R–3R stretch.
- If MACD flips against you and price closes beyond the opposite Bollinger Band, exit remainder on next open.
- Time-based exit: if trade hasn’t reached +0.5R within 5 bars on the execution timeframe, close it.
Fundamental Overlay & News
A light fundamental filter keeps you out of avoidable landmines. You don’t need to predict—just avoid unnecessary risk.
- For FX, note the central bank decision weeks; trade reduced size or stand aside 24 hours before/after.
- For equities, skip trades within 48 hours of earnings, major product events, or guidance updates.
- For crypto, avoid chasing headlines; trade technicals only when volatility normalizes (ATR back inside 30-day average).
- If a scheduled event directly targets your instrument (e.g., NFP for USD pairs), trade only post-release confirmation bars.
Routine & Playbook Execution
Routines turn strategy into results. Keep the day predictable so decisions stay sharp.
- Weekend: top-down scan, mark key levels, build the 10-name A-list, and write your scenarios.
- Daily pre-market: review overnight moves, update ATR/volatility, and re-rank setups A/B/C.
- During windows: execute only pre-planned orders; no fresh scanning mid-session.
- Post-market: screenshot entries/exits, log metrics (setup type, R multiple, holding time, MFE/MAE).
- One change per week rule: adjust only one variable (e.g., stop method) and track its impact.
Psychology & Process Discipline
Process shields you from mood and noise. These rules make “discipline” something you do, not something you hope for.
- Pre-commit checklist (10 items max): trend, pullback zone, trigger bar, stop location, risk%, correlation, catalyst risk, targets, trail plan, time-based exit.
- If two checklist items fail, the trade is invalid—no exceptions.
- Use “if-then” statements: “If price closes below swing low, then I exit remainder” to remove mid-trade debate.
- Hard limit of three trades per session; if hit, stop trading and review.
- When you break a rule, tag the trade as “rule-break,” cut size by 50% for the next five trades, and re-qualify.
Optimization & Continuous Improvement
Keep what works, drop what doesn’t. Small, measured tweaks compound into a sharper edge.
- Track win rate, average R, expectancy, and payoff ratio by setup (engulfing, pin, break-retest).
- Cull any setup with negative expectancy after 30 occurrences unless a single rule fix clearly flips it.
- Quarterly, re-test stop and trail methods; prefer the simplest rule that maintains or improves expectancy.
- Maintain a “hall of shame” of avoidable losses (news, correlation, over-size) and build explicit pre-trade filters for each.
- Archive all charts; once per month, replay 10 trades bar-by-bar to practice entries and stops without money at risk.
Risk Controls & Capital Protection
Survival comes first. These guardrails keep drawdowns manageable and your head clear.
- Daily loss limit: 1.5× average daily win or 2R, whichever is smaller; stop trading for the day if hit.
- Weekly drawdown brake: if down 4R on the week, cut size by 50% next week and trade only A-setups.
- Max account drawdown: 12% soft stop—at this point, pause live trading and run the playbook in demo for 20 trades.
- Withdraw a % of profits monthly (e.g., 20%) to de-risk and enforce consistency over jackpot hunting.
- Never increase size after a large win; size increases only after a rolling 20-trade positive expectancy.
Size Risk First: Protect Capital Before Chasing Any Setup
Gino Topini keeps it simple: survival comes before style. He starts every decision with maximum loss per trade, not potential profit, because one oversized position can erase a week of good work. That means defining the stop first, then backing into position size so the dollar risk stays constant. He also caps total portfolio heat, so multiple open trades don’t stack into one big, hidden bet.
Topini avoids adding to losers and only scales once a position is working, keeping the original stop until price proves the idea. He pairs a first target with a stop move to breakeven to protect capital when a trade goes his way. If the trade stalls and can’t produce progress within a set window, he exits and recycles risk into a fresher setup. By sizing the risk first, Gino Topini keeps his edge steady, his emotions quiet, and his account ready for the next high-quality opportunity.
Use Volatility-Based Position Sizing To Balance Trades Across Markets
Gino Topini adjusts the size to the instrument’s recent volatility so each position carries comparable risk. He uses ATR or standard deviation as the yardstick, shrinking size when volatility expands, and scaling slightly when it compresses. That way, a choppy crypto pair doesn’t dominate risk while a calmer FX pair contributes too little. The goal is equalized impact per trade, not equal lots or equal dollars.
Topini also recalibrates sizes weekly to reflect regime shifts, preventing stale parameters from drifting. He caps exposure if multiple symbols share the same driver, even when volatility math says he could add more. When a trade moves favorably, he may pyramid only after fresh volatility readings confirm risk remains controlled. By letting volatility dictate size, Gino Topini keeps outcomes steadier across markets and stays positioned when the next trend finally runs.
Diversify By Underlying, Strategy, And Holding Duration To Smooth Equity
Gino Topini spreads risk so no single idea or market can dictate results. He mixes FX majors with selective U.S. equities and only a couple of liquid crypto pairs, ensuring different drivers move the book. Topini also blends breakout and pullback entries, so one style isn’t responsible for every win or loss. This reduces equity swings and keeps confidence steady during inevitable cold streaks.
Duration matters too, so Gino Topini staggers holding periods across quick swings and slower trend holds. He limits the number of trades tied to the same macro theme to avoid stealth correlation. When a cluster forms, he trims or rotates into unrelated names, even if the charts still look good. By diversifying what he trades, how he trades, and how long he holds, he makes his P&L less volatile and more durable.
Trade The Mechanics: Rules, Checklists, And Time-Based Exits Beat Prediction
Gino Topini treats trading like running a playbook, not reading tea leaves. He follows a short checklist before every order—trend, pullback zone, trigger bar, stop location, and correlation—so nothing relies on a hunch. If any two items fail, he passes and keeps his powder dry. This simple gate keeps him from forcing trades when the market doesn’t cooperate.
Once in, Topini manages the position by predefined actions rather than emotions. He moves to breakeven after predefined progress, takes partials at set R-multiples, and trails the remainder with a rule he chose in advance. If the price goes nowhere for a fixed number of bars, he closes and redeploys risk into a fresher setup. The clock matters as much as the chart, and that time-based exit stops him from babysitting losers. By trusting the mechanics over prediction, Gino Topini stays consistent across market regimes.
Prefer Defined Risk Setups, Avoid Correlated Heat, Review Process Daily
Gino Topini favors trades where the maximum loss is known in advance and enforced by structure. He chooses entries with clear invalidation, places stops beyond the last swing, and sizes so a single failure won’t dent the week. To prevent one narrative from torching multiple positions, he caps positions that share the same driver and trims clusters as they form. If a setup can’t define risk cleanly—like pre-earnings stocks or news-whipsawed pairs—he either reduces size or stands aside.
Daily review keeps the edge sharp and the rules honest. Topini logs each trade with screenshots, notes MFE/MAE, tags any rule breaks, and writes a quick “fix one thing” action for tomorrow. He audits correlation exposure alongside P&L, so a green day isn’t hiding dangerous overlap. By combining defined risk, correlation control, and ruthless review, Gino Topini compounds small advantages into durable performance.
Gino Topini’s core message is deceptively simple: survive first, then compound with discipline. He built his approach on broad diversification—spreading risk across FX majors, selected U.S. stocks, and only a handful of liquid crypto pairs—so no single market or theme can hijack results. That “don’t put all your eggs in one basket” mantra isn’t a slogan for him; it’s the architecture behind what he trades, how large he trades it, and when he stands aside.
From there, Gino blends swing-based mechanics with a clean, testable toolkit. Longer holds lean on fundamentals and news flow; shorter trades are driven by technicals, using Fibonacci for value zones and a Bollinger-plus-MACD combo for timing and momentum confirmation. He pressure-tests ideas in a demo environment before risking real money, then executes live with fixed risk, correlation caps, time-based exits, and rule-driven scale-outs—trading the plan instead of his feelings. The net effect is a playbook that keeps him present when opportunity arrives and intact when it doesn’t.
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