Risk Monitoring - Referential Labs

Risk controls that work when you need them. Not after the fact in a post-mortem—but in real-time, before small problems become large losses.

The Problem

Algorithmic trading systems can lose money faster than humans can react. Without proper risk controls:

Runaway losses: A bug or market dislocation compounds before anyone notices
Position concentration: Correlated bets accumulate across strategies
Leverage creep: Gradual increases in risk exposure go unmonitored
Stale kill-switches: Manual intervention takes too long when it matters
Blind spots: Aggregate risk across strategies isn't visible

Our Approach

Systematic risk monitoring with configurable alerts and automated response. The platform enforces limits; your team defines what the limits should be and refines them over time.

Drawdown Monitoring

Track drawdowns at strategy and portfolio level. Alert and act when thresholds are breached.

Position Limits

Enforce position size, concentration, and sector exposure limits. Prevent drift before it becomes a problem.

Kill-Switch Integration

Automated response when limits are breached. Halt trading, flatten positions, or disable strategies instantly.

Anomaly Detection

Statistical detection of unusual behavior. Catch issues that don't trigger hard limits but still warrant attention.

Configurable Alerts

Set up alerts that match your risk tolerance:

Threshold alerts: Trigger when a metric crosses a defined level
Rate-of-change alerts: Trigger on rapid changes even if absolute levels are acceptable
Correlation alerts: Trigger when strategies become more correlated than expected
Anomaly alerts: Trigger on statistically unusual behavior
Heartbeat alerts: Trigger when expected updates don't arrive

Automated Response

When alerts fire, take action automatically:

Notify: Send alerts to Slack, email, PagerDuty, or custom webhooks
Throttle: Reduce order frequency or position sizing
Halt: Stop new orders while allowing existing positions
Flatten: Close all positions for a strategy or portfolio
Disable: Take strategies offline entirely

Risk Dashboards

Real-time visibility into your risk exposure:

Portfolio-level P&L, drawdown, and exposure
Strategy-level breakdown with drill-down
Position-level detail with Greeks (for options)
Historical trends and limit utilization
Alert history and response audit trail

Setting the Right Limits

The platform enforces limits—but setting the right limits requires judgment:

Limits too tight trigger unnecessary halts and missed opportunities
Limits too loose don't provide meaningful protection
Different market regimes may require different limits
New strategies need limit calibration based on observed behavior

We help you establish initial limits based on your risk tolerance and strategy characteristics, then refine them as you gather real-world data. Risk management is an ongoing practice, not a one-time configuration.

Get Started

Build risk controls that match your actual risk tolerance. We'll help you configure limits and refine them based on how your strategies behave in practice.

Frequently Asked Questions

What risk metrics do you track?

We track portfolio-level metrics (drawdown, VaR, exposure, leverage) and strategy-level metrics (P&L, position sizes, concentration, correlation). All metrics are configurable—we help you determine which metrics and thresholds are appropriate for your specific strategies and risk tolerance.

How does kill-switch integration work?

When risk thresholds are breached, we can trigger automated responses: halt new orders, flatten positions, or disable strategies. Integration works via API callbacks to your execution layer or direct broker connections. We help you test kill-switches before you need them in production.

Can I set different risk limits per strategy?

Yes. Each strategy can have its own risk limits, alert thresholds, and kill-switch triggers. You can also set portfolio-level limits that aggregate across strategies. Finding the right limits for each strategy requires observation and refinement.

Do you support real-time P&L tracking?

Yes. We calculate real-time P&L using live market data and your position data. P&L is broken down by strategy, asset, and time period with attribution. Accurate P&L depends on correct position data and market data—we help you validate both.