Complete Onboarding Guide
10 Steps to Launch Smart Hodl
1. Fiat Gateway (Coinmate / Kraken direct)
You need a way to move fiat currency into crypto. For Czech users we recommend Coinmate.io (CZK bank transfer). Elsewhere, Kraken accepts SEPA/wire directly.
- Registration + KYC (ID + selfie)
- Fiat deposit via bank transfer
- Buy USDT (or BTC) with fiat
2. Your Own Exchange Account (Binance / Kraken)
Smart Hodl never touches your money. The executor only sends orders via API to your own exchange account.
- Register + KYC on Binance Futures (more pairs) OR Kraken Futures (stronger EU regulation)
- Enable Futures trading (Binance requires a short quiz)
- Enable 2FA (Google Authenticator)
3. Transfer Funds → Exchange
Withdraw USDT to your Binance/Kraken deposit address.
- Recommended network: TRC20 (~$1 fee) or BEP20
- Avoid Ethereum ERC20 (~$5–20 fee)
- Always send a small test amount first (~$10) to verify the address + network. Then send the rest.
4. Smart Hodl Registration (Affiliate Link)
Use the affiliate link from whoever invited you — it links you to their upline and gives you the same conditions.
5. Smart Hodl Subscription Paid Step
Purchase your subscription at /my-account/ to unlock strategy access and the executor license.
6. VPS Purchase & Setup Paid Step
A VPS is the server where the executor runs 24/7. Full guide:
Recommended: Ubuntu 22.04, 2 GB RAM, 1 vCPU. Around €5–8 / month.
7. Kraken — Registration & API Keys
Binance is no longer available in the EU, so we all trade via Kraken Futures.
Register on Kraken
Use this link — it connects you to our community and gives you the same conditions:
https://invite.kraken.com/JDNW/mhqz2zm7
Disclosure: This is an affiliate link. Registration and trading conditions remain unchanged for you; we may earn a small referral commission.
After completing KYC verification, enable Futures trading and generate API keys:
futures.kraken.com → Settings → API Keys → Create Key
Read Only Account Information- Full Access Account (trading)
Withdraw Funds — MUST stay OFF (your guarantee that no one — not even Smart Hodl — can withdraw your funds)- IP restriction (optional): paste your VPS IP from step 6
The Private Key is shown only once at creation — save it to your password manager immediately.
8. Enter API Keys & Initial Capital
In your account at /my-account/ find the Exchange / API keys section:
- Paste API Key + Secret from step 7
- Set your initial capital — how much of your exchange balance Smart Hodl should allocate
Recommendation: start with 30–50 % of your balance, not everything. You can increase anytime.
9. Activate the Trading Node on Your VPS
SSH into your VPS and run the install script. Full instructions at /my-account/smart-hodl-node/.
# copy and run the install command from /my-account/smart-hodl-node/
Verification: the logs should show [bookticker] 100% coverage.
10. Monitor Your First Trades
- Email notifications for every opened/closed trade
- Dashboard /my-account/ — equity graph, open positions
- Actively watch the first week — confirm that orders actually reach the exchange
Timeline
Steps 1–2 (KYC verification) take 1–3 days. Steps 3–10 can be completed in a single evening. Steps 1, 2 and 6 can be started in parallel so KYC verifies in the background.