How do you change your account balance in paper trading account? I want to start each day with $100,000 for testing.
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@John_DiJulia The paper account equity cannot be changed. You will need to create a new paper account each day with a starting equity of $100k. Since various checks look at end of day equity (eg the pattern day trade check) you may want to create a new account (with a starting equity of $100k) before markets close to then be ready the next trading day with $100,000 equity.
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Thank you.
One more question. I will be depositing $100,000 to day trade with once I get through testing the software I built.
If I used all the buying power, how would I maintain $25K in the account at all times to satisfy FINRA’s Pattern Day Trader rule?
Thanks
JP
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Hi John,
Thank you for the question.
The FINRA PDT requirement is based on equity, not on how much cash is left unused. As long as your account equity (value of cash + securities minus any margin debit) is at least $25,000 at the end of the trading day, you satisfy the PDT equity requirement, even if most of that equity is tied up in open positions.
Hope that helps!
If you require any help onboarding or funding please reach out to support@alpaca.markets.
Tony