Providing more liquidity through automated trading scripts AKA 'bots'

[crynvestor42]

have you seen BTSbots.com?
Its an open source BTS bot where you don't have to hand over your private key

Yes I have, but it lacks some features in my opinion. And not that I have found a solution for that but I think you do have to hand over the private key of the account you're botting with on btsbots no?

[JonnyB]

have you seen BTSbots.com?
Its an open source BTS bot where you don't have to hand over your private key

[crynvestor42]

Hello BitShares community,

Without elaborating too much on my positive opinion and possibilities of a decentralized community/business/company such as BitShares, it still needs main adoption and understanding from a bigger crowd and even though I'm sure it's not a one way solution; an overall increase of liquidity is something that will benefit not only BitShares but the cryptocurrency/blockchain community as a whole.
I've been interested in automated trading scripts or commonly known as bots, actually the moment since I started using exchanges. Even though most exchanges provide (IMHO) enough of (API) documentation to make (basic) trading scripts (cfr. the easiest 'bot' being for example just spamming buys and sells with a certain difference), I have not been able to find some decent platforms providing some sort of an AIO trading solution at a customer friendly price myself. I have been able to write some really basic scripts myself with the little skills I have.

So to be honest, I've been fooling around with such an idea myself and have been working on it already to some extent. I'm nowhere near a secure platform, but because of my profound beliefs that an ecosystem such as BitShares is (part of) the future, I would want to open it freely to BitShares users to some extent if it were ever to come to a lauch, which is why I'm actually starting this thread here; hoping to get a decent and critical view of what such a platform (decentralized if possible) would actually require, aswell as some extra, nice or cool features to perhaps be added to such a platform.

To understand better some of my opinions or answers to the following questions you need to know that my current view on this platform is to effectively use BitShares account names as the 'base' of the 'botting' account (which basically just translates to: if you have access to 'that' BitShares account, you can have access (with a different password of course) to 'that' 'botting' account and in this case; vice versa: by having a botting account that's API-wise connected to ... ).
While actually any API-connected exchange could be 'communicated' with or added to the platform if provided with the proper tools, I'm still not quiet sure on how to make these 'communications' as secure as possible and was wondering for some advice from the more 'seniorized' developers.

As already mentioned, I'm nowhere near completion of a secure platform, but given the relative progress already made with the basic skills I have, I'm having the following honest questions (with my own view/opinion/answer under it):

Why aren't there more platforms providing such a solution (=multiple api connections to trade at multiple exchanges) in one platform?
The first thing I'm struggling to find a decent solution for, is how the private key(s) from the BTS account (and possible other decentralized (trading-)platforms in the future), and if going even further, how the api pair (key+secret) of other centralized exchanges could be safely 'stored' somehow so the script can keep looping/checking/counting down/trading using these credentials, without exposing them at (hopefully) any point except in the ordercall to the corresponding platform...
Of course my search can have been not as extensive as yours, so if you have got some decent, possible decentralized (idea of an) application(s) that already exists, I'll be glad to hear of them!

What would the basic and extensive features or implementations of such a platform be?
The basic features I'll be mainly working on will make anyone able to SECURELY:
(listed according to priority, first = top priority)

• Check your balances of any connected exchange/trading platform
• Trade automatically through basic automated scripts on these exchanges/platforms
• Follow prices live from all connected exchanges/platforms
• Trade live on all connected exchanges/platforms

Some extensive features (though only idea's):

• Statistics of your bots: (though every transaction will be recorded and should be able to be looked up, extensive features on possible profit calcutions etc. are 'only' future secondary priority features)
• News section: Not related to this project but it's a nice project that could be integrated fairly easy (regarding news delivery): https://cryptopanic.com/ they provide a JSON api of ALL news and even of your own 'filtered' news if you were to have an account there. 
• Botting contest: to be seen as small and as big as possible, perhaps a monthly price for the top 3 'botters' in volume?
• Trading pools: not sure to what extent this will be possible but given everything above works, a 'competitive' extra game and incentive could be created for people joining together (some of their) funds into some sort of 'trading pool'. These trading pools could be started by anyone that can choose for theirselves what platforms to trade on, what pairs to trade, ... Just a vague idea, not worth working out in detail as of yet

Possible funds
Even though I'm not actually a fan of an 'ICO' for various reasons, I will however provide some kind of future UIA which is to be held if one would like to use more bots (probably for  centralized exchanges only).
The funds raised with these UIA's are to be used in a future 'public botting project' or 'PBP' that will have an overall total balance transparantly shown at all times. Since I doubt there is a better way than to constantly and transparantly show the balances of all the connected exchanges of this PBP, I'm confident that in time these 'public bots' will have a steady history of providing liquidity on top of making some (spare) profit, providing the best evidence for people not interested in solely providing liquidity.

Possible worker?
However I want to let people bot on decentralized exchanges as much as they like to, well, improve the liquidity of these exchanges. Since BitShares is one of the exchanges I've grown fond of lately because of its core principles and thus future possibilities, I was wondering to what extent you as possible future 'botter', BitShares user and/or possible worker voter would like to see such a platform build?

To be honest I'll be working on this platform no matter what possible feedback comes out of this topic, but I like the idea of actually interacting with the BitShares' blockchain and thus the community by providing this platform in the form of a worker, establishing perhaps somehow a community voted worker to establish a payment relevant to the features demanded or requested by the BitShares community so that no ICO or crowdfunding is actually needed to test and push the platform to its limits before it is publicly launched.
Which leaves 2 questions:
1. What features would you like to see added? basic and / or extensive
2. What would you like to see the BitShares worker ecosystem pay for such a platform in the form of a worker?
Any feedback is gladly accepted, also if any community confirmed escrow may see a possible future here and would like to be the escrow that will handle the possible future payments of the worker in an honest and transparant way, don't hesitate to contact me.

The future of such a platform?
Well, again in my honest opinion, almost endless. By providing these services, that will of course be extensively tested before we ever come to a possible official launch, I'm quiet certain of a sufficient profit for our own bots and other users of the platform, that a new gateway could actually be born out of the profit of traded pairs. The bot or script would already have the possibility of trading at all connected platforms, so if after some time, enough collateral can be acquired, we can actually look forward to perhaps start this new gateway, providing pairs of ALL connected exchanges, on the BitShares Dex. Future dreaming of course, but why not.

Conclusion
While I'm sure there are and always will be other and better platforms that do what I'm trying to achieve here, I hope that together with community input and guidance, this platform could grow to a thriving liquidity providing service, that will benefit not only the BitShares ecosystem but all cryptocurrency hodlers. By connecting multiple platforms/exchanges in one AIO platform, we can hopefully, in time, provide listing and liquidity for all user requested pairs, since anyone should be able to trade the currencies they want.

Leaves me nothing but to thank you for reading this, any kind of feedback is welcome and gladly appreciated!

PS: I know a big part of the BitShares community is Chinese, which is why if anyone should have the knowledge to translate it and post it on the comparable section of the Chinese BitShares community forum, please contact me prior in doing so a bounty can be discussed or someone else isn't already working on it!