---
title: "On the portfolio"
description: "On the portfolio is a Combined-only risk rule that watches the Combined's own value and goes Risk-Off on high volatility, a deep drawdown or a broken trend."
canonical_url: "https://fincanva.com/docs/strategies/on-the-portfolio"
last_updated: "2026-09-24"
md_url: "https://fincanva.com/docs/strategies/on-the-portfolio.md"
---

# On the portfolio

On the portfolio is a quantitative risk rule for a [Combined](/docs/getting-started/combined) that watches the Combined's own value instead of a market series, and switches it to its Risk-Off allocation when that value becomes too volatile, falls too far from its peak, or drops below its moving average — whichever of the three metrics you pick. It exists only at the Combined level. It is one of the three rules in the **Quantitative regimes** group of the risk condition builder, where the app describes it as "Watches your Combined, not an index: you move to Risk-Off when it gets too turbulent, falls too far from its peak or breaks its trend."

**Also seen as:** portfolio-based rule, equity-curve trading, portfolio stop

## What does the rule watch?

The rule watches your Combined as it would have run if it had always stayed Risk-On, with no costs — the app's note reads "Always held Risk-On, with no costs. No series to choose." It does not watch the Combined's actual curve, because that curve already reflects the rule's own switches: judging it would make every switch change the signal that caused it. Holding the watched version permanently Risk-On keeps the signal independent of the decision it drives.

## Which metrics can it use?

The rule reads one **Metric**, and each has its own test on the watched value $P_t$:

$$
\text{Realized volatility:}\;\; \sigma_t \ge \theta
\qquad
\text{Drawdown:}\;\; 1 - \frac{P_t}{\max_{s \le t} P_s} \ge \theta
\qquad
\text{Trend vs moving average:}\;\; P_t < (1 - g) \times \overline{P}_{t,n}
$$

where $P_t$ is the watched value on day $t$, $\sigma_t$ its annualised volatility over the window, $\max_{s \le t} P_s$ its highest value so far, $\overline{P}_{t,n}$ its average over the last $n$ days, $\theta$ the threshold you set, and $g$ the gap from the average. In words: Risk-Off while the Combined swings more than you set, sits at least the set share below its [peak](/docs/analysis/max-drawdown), or trades below its moving average by more than the gap.

| Metric | Window | Threshold | Risk-Off when |
|---|---|---|---|
| **Realized volatility** (default) | 10–252 trading days, default 21 | annual volatility, 5%–100%, default 20% | "volatility exceeds this value" |
| **Drawdown** | none — "Not needed: measured from the previous peak." | loss from peak, 2%–50%, default 10% | "the Combined loses at least this share from its peak" |
| **Trend vs moving average** | moving average of 10–252 days, default 200 | gap from the average, 0%–10%, default 0% | "the Combined falls below its moving average by more than this gap" |

The same three tests in prose: volatility uses a trailing window and a yearly figure; drawdown needs no window because it is always measured from the running peak; the trend test with a gap of 0% fires as soon as the Combined is below its average.

## How does Fincanva handle it?

- **Combined only.** The rule is offered at the Combined level and never inside a single strategy; there is no series to choose.
- **About twice the calculation time.** To decide, the backtest first simulates the Combined held Risk-On with no costs, then runs it for real. The builder shows it as a notice: "About twice the calculation time." and "That is why the simulation does not start on its own: you start it." — after a change, the Combined waits for you to start the backtest.
- **It stays Risk-On until its window is full**, and each test uses only data up to the day it judges.
- **One threshold, no hysteresis.** The [confirmation delay](/docs/strategies/confirmation-delay) is the brake against switching back and forth; its hint on this rule reads "This rule has a single threshold: the delay is your brake against switching too often. 0 = immediate." **Auto-rebalance** works as it does on any condition.
- **On the portfolio is included from the Ultimate plan**, at the Combined level. On Advanced it still appears in the list, tagged with the plan level that includes it. See [what each plan includes](/docs/account-security/what-each-plan-includes).
- In the list of risk conditions a saved rule shows "On the portfolio" with its metric and its threshold, for example "≥ 20%" with "21-day window", or "< average" with "200-day moving average".

## What does it look like in practice?

A Combined holding two strategies gets an On the portfolio rule with **Drawdown** at 15% and a confirmation delay of 1 week. Its always-Risk-On version peaks at 120,000. Over the next two months it falls to 108,000 — a 10% drawdown, under the threshold, so nothing happens. It keeps falling to 101,000: $1 - 101{,}000 / 120{,}000 \approx 15.8\%$, at or above 15%, so the rule asks for Risk-Off, and a week later the Combined switches to its Risk-Off allocation.

It returns to Risk-On once the always-Risk-On version climbs back within 15% of its peak — above 102,000 — and the delay has passed. With **Realized volatility** at 20% instead, the same stretch would have switched only if the Combined's 21-day volatility rose to 20% a year, however far it had fallen. The figures are illustrative, not a suggested setting.

Fincanva is for education and illustration only. It is not personalised financial advice, and past or simulated results do not predict future ones. [Read the Terms Addendum](https://fincanva.com/terms/addendum#section-3)