---
title: "Condition types"
description: "Condition types are the shapes a risk condition takes: Single series against thresholds, Double series against a series, or one of three quantitative rules."
canonical_url: "https://fincanva.com/glossary/condition-types"
last_updated: "2026-10-06"
md_url: "https://fincanva.com/glossary/condition-types.md"
---

# Condition types

Condition types are the shapes a [risk condition](/glossary/risk-condition) can take, chosen from the builder's **Signal** menu. Under **Custom**, "Single series" compares one [instrument](/glossary/instrument)'s indicator with two thresholds you type, and "Double series" compares two series through an **Operator**. Under **Quantitative regimes**, three more rules decide from a model instead of a comparison.

**Also seen as:** dual thresholds, hysteresis band, Double series

$$
\text{Single series:}\quad {s_t} \;{\square}\; {\theta}
\qquad\qquad
\text{Double series:}\quad {s^{(1)}_t} \;{\square}\; {s^{(2)}_t}
$$

where:

- the reading the chosen Indicator produces from the watched series on the day checked
- the Operator: is above, or is below
- a threshold you type — one in the Risk-Off comparison, another in the Risk-On comparison
- the second series' own reading, with its own instrument, Indicator and Period

The two Custom types differ only in the right-hand side: a number you type, or a second series. The three quantitative rules — [Hidden regimes (Markov)](/glossary/hidden-regimes-markov), [Clustering](/glossary/clustering) and, on a [Combined](/glossary/combined) only, [Strategy's own performance](/glossary/strategy-s-own-performance) — each state their own test on their own page.

## How does Fincanva handle it?

A strategy's Risk card shows a Single series condition — the VIX above 25, back to Risk-On below 20 — and a Double series condition — the S&P 500 below its own 200-day moving average — joined by Or.

- Thresholds accept −1000 to 1000; outside that the app reports "Risk threshold must be between -1000 and 1000." A threshold is read in the indicator's own units — an index level, a percentage for a percent change, percentage points for a yield spread.
- The **Operator** offers "is above" and "is below", and nothing else. A rule reads which side of the line the series is on, so it switches when the series crosses and holds that state while the series stays there. A rule saved earlier with "crosses above" or "crosses below" opens, and runs in the [backtest](/glossary/backtest), as "is above" or "is below".
- Fincanva does not publish each indicator's engine formula or its shipped default window — engine internals — and does not suggest a threshold, a series or a type. See [Is this financial advice?](/docs/investing-theory/is-this-financial-advice#is-this-financial-advice).

## What does it look like in practice?

Take a Single series condition on a market index you choose, with the **Indicator** set to "Percent change" and a **Period** of 6, so the condition reads the index's percent change over six months — the sentence says "6-month change". In the Risk-Off comparison you set the operator to "is below" and the value to −5%; in the Risk-On comparison, "is above" and 2%.

Risk-Off is now requested when the six-month change drops below −5%, and Risk-On only once it has climbed back above +2%. A reading of −1% satisfies neither test, so an index that fell 6% and then recovered to −1% is not yet asked back into Risk-On — it has to clear +2% first. Had you set both thresholds to 0, an index oscillating around flat would ask for a switch at every crossing. The −5 and +2 are illustrative numbers that show the asymmetry, not a suggested setting; the overlap that must be avoided is on [the two thresholds](/glossary/risk-condition#how-do-the-risk-off-and-risk-on-thresholds-work).

## What condition types are there?

There are five, in two groups: the two **Custom** shapes differ only in what the watched series is measured against, and the three **Quantitative regimes** rules replace the comparison with a model.

| Condition type | Group | Measured against | Values its sentence holds |
|---|---|---|---|
| **Single series** | Custom | two numbers you type | the instrument, its **Indicator** (with a **Period** where needed), a **Risk-Off** and a **Risk-On** comparison |
| **Double series** | Custom | a second series | **Series 1**, an **Operator**, a **Comparison series** |
| **Hidden regimes (Markov)** | Quantitative regimes | a probability threshold on the turbulent state | **Instrument**, **Number of states**, **Probability threshold** |
| **Clustering** | Quantitative regimes | membership of the most volatile group of days | **Instrument**, **Observation window (trading days)**, **Number of regimes** |
| **Strategy's own performance** | Quantitative regimes, Combined only | the Combined's own [volatility](/glossary/volatility), drawdown or trend | **Metric**, a window where the metric uses one, a threshold |

Switching between the two Custom types swaps those fields and keeps everything else you set; switching to Hidden regimes (Markov) or Clustering keeps the instrument, the **Confirmation delay (weeks)** and **Auto-rebalance**, and drops the indicator, which those rules do not use.

## Why does a Single series condition have two thresholds instead of one?

Because one line would make the [strategy](/glossary/strategy) flip every time the series wobbled across it. A series hovering at a single threshold crosses it repeatedly, and each crossing would swap the whole allocation profile — turnover for no lasting change, which is [whipsaw](/glossary/whipsaw). Two thresholds separate the point where Risk-Off is requested from the point where Risk-On is requested, leaving a band between them where neither test is satisfied and nothing is asked for.

That asymmetry is the point: the return threshold sits on the far side of the entry threshold, so the series has to travel a real distance back before the strategy is asked to return to Risk-On. Engineers call this **hysteresis** — the state depends on which threshold was crossed last, not on a single value. Fincanva exposes both thresholds and both operators; how the engine resolves a reading inside the band is internal. The [confirmation delay](/glossary/confirmation-delay) works on the same problem from the other side: patience in time, where the two thresholds add distance in value.

## What do Indicator and Period set?

The **Indicator** sets how the series is transformed before the comparison, and the **Period** field under it sets how many periods that transformation covers. The four options are [Raw price](/glossary/raw-price), [Simple moving average](/glossary/simple-moving-average-sma), [Percent change](/glossary/percent-change) and [Average momentum](/glossary/average-momentum). In a **Double series** condition each side has its own Indicator, which is how a series is compared with a transformed version of itself — the S&P 500 [risk template](/glossary/risk-templates) reads "Risk-Off when the S&P 500 is below its 200-day simple moving average."

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)