COT Smart Money Monitor

Automated Commitment of Traders (COT) analysis system that detects hedge fund positioning divergences and extreme levels, delivering weekly email reports via n8n.

Based on: Swing Trading Strategy Framework - Verified Traders Roundtable

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📦 What's Included

• cot_monitor.py - Main Python script for COT analysis
• requirements.txt - Python dependencies
• config.json - Configuration file (assets, webhook URL)
• n8n_cot_workflow.json - Ready-to-import n8n workflow
• README.md - This file

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🎯 What It Does

Monitors 7 Assets:

• NQ (Nasdaq 100)
• SPX (S&P 500)
• BTC (Bitcoin)
• ETH (Ethereum)
• EUR (Euro FX)
• USD (US Dollar Index)
• GOLD (Gold)

Detects 4 Signal Types:

1. Bullish Divergence - Price new low, hedge funds higher low
2. Bearish Divergence - Price new high, hedge funds lower high
3. Extreme Bullish - Hedge funds at 3-year max bearish (contrarian buy)
4. Extreme Bearish - Hedge funds at 3-year max bullish (contrarian sell)

Delivers:

• Beautiful HTML email every Sunday
• Summary of active signals
• Full positioning data for all assets
• Playbook guidance for each signal

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🚀 Quick Start (Local Testing)

1. Install Python Dependencies

pip install -r requirements.txt

2. Set Up n8n Workflow

1. Open your n8n cloud instance
2. Click Workflows → Import from File
3. Upload n8n_cot_workflow.json
4. Open the "Send Email" node
5. Configure with your Gmail account (OAuth2)
6. Update the recipient email address
7. Click "Webhook" node to see your webhook URL
8. Copy the webhook URL (looks like: https://your-n8n.app/webhook/cot-report)
9. Save & Activate the workflow

3. Configure Python Script

Edit config.json and update:

{
  "n8n_webhook_url": "https://your-n8n.app/webhook/cot-report",
  ...
}

4. Test Run

python3 cot_monitor.py

Expected output:

======================================================================
COT SMART MONEY MONITOR
======================================================================
Run time: 2025-11-11 11:30:00

✓ Loaded configuration from config.json

📊 Analyzing Nasdaq 100 (NQ)...
  Fetching NASDAQ-100 MINI...
  ✓ Retrieved 156 weeks of data
  Status: NEUTRAL
  HF Net: 15,234

[... continues for all assets ...]

======================================================================
SUMMARY
======================================================================
Assets analyzed: 7
Active signals: 2

🚨 ACTIVE SIGNALS:
  • Nasdaq 100 (NQ): 🔥 BULLISH DIVERGENCE
  • Gold (GOLD): ⚠️ EXTREME BULLISH

💾 Report saved: cot_report_20251111.json

📤 Sending to webhook: https://your-n8n.app/webhook/cot-report
✓ Webhook delivered successfully

✓ Analysis complete!
======================================================================

Check your email! You should receive the formatted COT report.

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☁️ Deploy to Render.com (Free Tier)

Why Render?

• ✅ 100% free tier with cron jobs
• ✅ Runs every Sunday automatically
• ✅ No server management
• ✅ Built-in monitoring

Setup Instructions

1. Create Render Account

   • Go to https://render.com
   • Sign up (free)

2. Create New Cron Job

   • Dashboard → "New +" → "Cron Job"
   • Name: cot-monitor
   • Runtime: Python 3
   • Build Command: pip install -r requirements.txt
   • Command: python cot_monitor.py
   • Schedule: 0 17 * * 5 (Every Friday 5pm EST - when COT data drops)

3. Connect Your Repository

   Option A: Upload via GitHub

   • Create a private GitHub repo
   • Push all files (cot_monitor.py, requirements.txt, config.json)
   • Connect repo to Render

   Option B: Upload Directly

   • Zip all files
   • Upload to Render dashboard

4. Set Environment Variables (Optional)

   • In Render dashboard, go to Environment
   • Add: N8N_WEBHOOK_URL = your webhook URL
   • Update cot_monitor.py to read from env var instead of config.json

5. Deploy

   • Click "Create Cron Job"
   • Wait for first build (~1-2 minutes)
   • View logs to confirm success

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📧 Email Preview

Your Sunday email will look like this:

📊 COT Smart Money Report
Week ending November 10, 2025

🚨 ACTIVE SIGNALS
• Nasdaq 100 (NQ): 🔥 BULLISH DIVERGENCE (Net: 15,234)
• Gold (GOLD): ⚠️ EXTREME BULLISH (Net: -45,678)

📈 All Assets Summary

Code  | Asset              | HF Net     | Status              | Guidance
------|--------------------|-----------|--------------------|-------------------
NQ    | Nasdaq 100         | +15,234   | 🔥 BULLISH DIV     | Wait for retracement
SPX   | S&P 500            | +45,123   | NEUTRAL            | Monitor
BTC   | Bitcoin            | -8,456    | NEUTRAL            | Monitor
ETH   | Ethereum           | -2,345    | NEUTRAL            | Monitor
EUR   | Euro FX            | +12,678   | NEUTRAL            | Monitor
USD   | US Dollar Index    | -5,432    | NEUTRAL            | Monitor
GOLD  | Gold               | -45,678   | ⚠️ EXTREME BULL    | Contrarian long zone

📚 Playbook Reminder
• Bullish Divergence: Price makes new low, but hedge funds make higher low
• Bearish Divergence: Price makes new high, but hedge funds make lower high
• Extreme Positioning: Hedge funds at 3-year max = contrarian opportunity
• Next Step: Use technical analysis to time entry on retracements

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🔧 Customization

Change Assets

Edit config.json:

"assets": {
  "YOUR_CODE": {
    "name": "Display Name",
    "contract_name": "EXACT CFTC CONTRACT NAME",
    "cftc_code": "CFTC_CODE"
  }
}

Find CFTC contract names: https://publicreporting.cftc.gov/

Change Schedule

Render Cron Syntax:

• 0 17 * * 5 = Every Friday 5pm EST
• 0 9 * * 0 = Every Sunday 9am
• 0 */6 * * * = Every 6 hours

When does COT data update?

• Released every Friday at 3:30pm EST
• Set cron for 5pm EST to ensure data is available

Change Lookback Periods

Edit config.json:

"lookback": {
  "divergence_weeks": 52,   // 1 year
  "extreme_weeks": 156       // 3 years
}

Add More Alert Channels

Modify n8n workflow:

• Add Telegram node after "Format Email"
• Add Discord webhook node
• Add Slack notification node
• All nodes receive same data

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🐛 Troubleshooting

"No data returned from API"

Cause: CFTC contract name doesn't match API Fix: Verify contract names at https://publicreporting.cftc.gov/resource/gpe5-46if.json

Example query:

https://publicreporting.cftc.gov/resource/gpe5-46if.json?$select=contract_market_name&$group=contract_market_name

"Webhook failed"

Cause: Incorrect webhook URL or n8n workflow not activated Fix:

1. Check n8n workflow is Activated (toggle in top-right)
2. Copy webhook URL directly from n8n webhook node
3. Test webhook with curl:

   curl -X POST https://your-n8n.app/webhook/cot-report \
     -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
     -d '{"test": "data"}'

"Gmail authentication failed"

Fix:

1. In n8n, re-authenticate Gmail node
2. Use OAuth2 (not SMTP)
3. Grant all required permissions

"Script hangs or times out"

Cause: CFTC API slow or down Fix: The script has 30-second timeouts. If CFTC is down, wait and retry later.

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📊 Data Sources

Primary: CFTC Socrata API

• Endpoint: https://publicreporting.cftc.gov/resource/gpe5-46if.json
• Report: Traders in Financial Futures (TFF)
• Update Schedule: Every Friday 3:30pm EST
• Rate Limit: None (public API)
• Cost: 100% Free

Alternative: CFTC Legacy Reports

• If Socrata API unavailable, script can be modified to parse legacy text files
• Less reliable but backup option

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🔐 Security Notes

• config.json contains webhook URL - Don't commit to public repos
• Add to .gitignore:

  config.json
  cot_report_*.json
  

• Render Environment Variables - Use for production webhook URL
• n8n Webhook - No authentication by default. Add basic auth if needed.

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📈 Future Enhancements

Phase 2: Price Integration

• Fetch actual price data to improve divergence detection
• Currently uses HF positioning trends as proxy

Phase 3: Backtesting

• Historical signal performance
• Win rate analysis
• Optimal entry timing

Phase 4: Altcoin Indicator (Arkham MCP)

• On-chain whale wallet tracking
• Smart money accumulation for SOL, AVAX, HYPE
• Same divergence logic, blockchain data

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📚 Resources

• CFTC COT Reports: https://www.cftc.gov/MarketReports/CommitmentsofTraders/index.htm
• Playbook Source: Titans of Tomorrow Podcast - Verified Traders Roundtable
• n8n Docs: https://docs.n8n.io
• Render Docs: https://render.com/docs

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✅ Checklist

• Python installed (3.8+)
• Dependencies installed (pip install -r requirements.txt)
• n8n workflow imported and activated
• Gmail connected in n8n
• Webhook URL copied to config.json
• Test run successful (python3 cot_monitor.py)
• Email received
• Deployed to Render (optional)
• First automated run verified

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💬 Support

Issues?

1. Check logs: cot_report_YYYYMMDD.json
2. Verify n8n workflow is active
3. Test webhook manually with curl
4. Confirm CFTC API is accessible

Need Help?

• Review troubleshooting section above
• Check CFTC API status
• Verify contract names match exactly

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Built with:

• Python 3
• CFTC Socrata API
• n8n workflow automation
• Render.com hosting

Last Updated: November 11, 2025