Heikin-Ashi Supertrend
This version of the Supertrend is drawn on Heikin-Ashi candles rather than ordinary ones, using a wide band of six times a 6-candle ATR around a median-smoothed midpoint. It runs on 5-minute NIFTY futures candles and is always in the market: long while the line is below price, short once it flips above. Positions are carried overnight and across days until the next flip.How it trades
Results
PRE-BUILT · DEFAULTSWhere it made and lost money
This is a pure trend follower, and the evidence shows it plainly. Trades during which NIFTY fell more than 1% made +₹4,47,185 over 31 trades, and those during which it rose more than 1% made ₹2,09,809 over 23, because the always-in system is short or long for the whole move. The 79 trades where NIFTY stayed within ±1% lost ₹3,13,104, as the line flipped back and forth. Entries on 56 choppy days lost ₹2,61,379, while 47 trend-day entries made ₹3,00,178. Nervous evenings with India VIX above 14.5 made ₹1,85,256, and the 29 trades opened on weekly expiry days lost ₹1,09,505.
About this strategy
- Build 5-minute candles of the near-month NIFTY future, adjusted so monthly rolls do not create false jumps, and convert them to Heikin-Ashi candles.
- Take the midpoint of each Heikin-Ashi high and low, smooth it with a 3-candle moving median, and set bands 6 × ATR(6) above and below it.
- The trend turns up when a Heikin-Ashi close goes above the upper band and down when it closes below the lower band.
- On a flip, reverse the position at the first real futures tick after that candle closes: buy one lot on an up-flip, sell one lot on a down-flip.
- There is no separate stop or target; the opposite flip is the only exit, and the trade is held overnight.
- On futures expiry day close at 15:15 and reopen the same side in the next month at the following session's first tick.
Why traders use it
Supertrend is one of the most followed trend indicators among Indian futures traders, but on plain candles it flips often in sideways markets. Heikin-Ashi averaging and a median midpoint calm the input, and the very wide 6 × ATR band means only a substantial reversal changes the side. The result is a slow, always-in trend follower that tries to stay with multi-day moves and accept fewer, larger trades.
The year in plain words
From 1 Oct 2025 to 30 Sep 2026 on NIFTY futures with default settings, the system closed 168 trades and won 39%, for ₹1,23,729 before costs and a profit factor of 1.13. It lived on big winners: the average win was ₹16,056 against an average loss of ₹8,931, and March alone made ₹1,39,524. October lost ₹80,528 and four of the last five months were negative, with a maximum drawdown of ₹1,53,206. Because it trades relatively rarely, costs took a smaller bite: after ₹20 per order and bid-ask slippage it kept ₹83,949.
What the settings do
Risks
- There is no fixed stop, so a single trade can lose a lot before the line flips; the worst trade here lost ₹41,775.
- The position is always open and held overnight, so it is fully exposed to gaps and needs futures margin at all times.
- Profit depended on a few months; without March the year would have been much weaker.
- Drawdowns larger than ₹1.5 lakh per lot occurred, which can test the discipline to keep following the signals.
Who it suits
Patient positional traders who can keep a NIFTY futures lot open at all times, tolerate a sub-40% win rate, and accept deep drawdowns in return for staying in long trends.
Questions traders ask
What is a Heikin-Ashi Supertrend?
It is the Supertrend indicator calculated on Heikin-Ashi candles instead of normal candles. Because Heikin-Ashi averages each candle, the line is smoother and flips less often. This version also uses a median midpoint and a wide multiplier of 6 on a 6-period ATR.
Is the Heikin-Ashi Supertrend profitable on NIFTY futures?
In this backtest from 1 Oct 2025 to 30 Sep 2026 it made ₹1,23,729 before costs and ₹83,949 after ₹20 per order and bid-ask slippage, with statutory charges not included. It also had a ₹1,53,206 drawdown before costs and a 39% win rate. Past results do not guarantee future ones.
Does it use a stop loss?
Not a separate one. The Supertrend line acts as the exit: when price closes through it, the system reverses. The flip is acted on only after the 5-minute candle closes, so the actual exit can be some way past the line.
How is the monthly futures roll handled?
The candles are built on a roll-adjusted price series so the jump between contracts does not create a fake signal. On expiry day the position is closed at 15:15 and the same side is reopened in the next month at the following open.