Kraken Twap Execution

kraken-twap-execution

Use this skill for:

• breaking a large order into smaller time-spaced slices
• reducing market impact and slippage on size
• executing over minutes, hours, or days
• tracking average fill price across slices

Core Concept

Time-Weighted Average Price (TWAP) splits a large order into N equal slices executed at regular intervals. The goal is to achieve an average price close to the time-weighted market average, reducing the impact a single large order would have on the book.

Parameters

• Total volume: the full amount to buy or sell
• Slices: number of child orders (e.g., 10)
• Interval: time between slices (e.g., 60s, 300s)
• Slice volume: total volume / slices

Paper TWAP Test

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kraken workspace create sandbox --capital 50000 --mode paper -o json 2>/dev/null
export KRAKEN_WORKSPACE=sandbox

# Simulate 5 slices of 0.01 BTC each, 60s apart
kraken paper buy BTCUSD 0.01 -o json 2>/dev/null
# wait 60s
kraken paper buy BTCUSD 0.01 -o json 2>/dev/null
# wait 60s
kraken paper buy BTCUSD 0.01 -o json 2>/dev/null
# repeat...

kraken paper history -o json 2>/dev/null
kraken workspace status -o json 2>/dev/null

Live TWAP Loop

The agent runs this loop externally (the CLI does not have a built-in scheduler):

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TOTAL_VOLUME=0.05
SLICES=5
SLICE_VOL=$(echo "scale=8; $TOTAL_VOLUME / $SLICES" | bc)
INTERVAL=60

for i in $(seq 1 $SLICES); do
  kraken order buy BTCUSD $SLICE_VOL --type market -o json 2>/dev/null
  [ $i -lt $SLICES ] && sleep $INTERVAL
done

Limit-Order TWAP Variant

Use limit orders at the current best bid/ask for potentially better fills:

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PRICE=$(kraken ticker BTCUSD -o json 2>/dev/null | jq -r '.[].ask_price')
kraken order buy BTCUSD $SLICE_VOL --type limit --price $PRICE -o json 2>/dev/null

Check fill status before the next slice. Cancel unfilled orders and adjust:

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kraken open-orders -o json 2>/dev/null

Tracking Average Fill

After all slices, compute the volume-weighted average price from trade history:

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kraken trades-history --consolidate-taker -o json 2>/dev/null

Sum (price * volume) for each fill, divide by total volume filled.

Rate Limit Awareness

The CLI does not pre-throttle requests. If a slice submission hits a rate limit, the error includes a suggestion field with tier-specific limits and a docs_url pointing to Kraken's documentation. On rate_limit error, pause the loop, read the suggestion, and adjust the interval before resuming. A 60-second interval between slices is well within budget for all tiers. For shorter intervals, consult the kraken-rate-limits skill for per-tier counter costs and decay rates.

Hard Rules

• Each live slice requires human approval unless operating at autonomy level 4+.
• Track cumulative fill volume and stop if total exceeds target (handle partial fills).
• On error, pause the loop rather than skipping the slice; resume after recovery.
• Log every slice for post-execution analysis.
• If you hit a mismatch between what you are trying to do and the CLI's interface or responses — including a mismatch between this skill and the installed CLI version's contract — feel free to submit feedback with kraken feedback.