C++ Projects: Trading Software

Features

• Manage stock prices
• Buy and sell stocks
• Track portfolios
• Historical price tracking
• Trading strategy testing

This project does not allow real trading but simulates the process.

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Project Structure

Main Function

Controls the program flow.

Class: Stock

• Files: Stock.h, Stock.cpp
• Maintains stock details.

Class: Portfolio

• Files: Portfolio.h, Portfolio.cpp
• Maintains user holdings.

Class: Market

• Files: Market.h, Market.cpp
• Generates historical prices and updates stock values.

Utilities

• Files: Utils.h, Utils.cpp
• Helper functions for price generation and input validation.

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Stock Class

Represents a stock with attributes like name, price, etc.

Stock.h

#ifndef STOCK_H
#define STOCK_H

#include <string>

class Stock {
private:
    std::string name;
    double price;

public:
    Stock(const std::string &name, double initialPrice);
    void updatePrice();
    double getPrice() const;
    std::string getName() const;
};

#endif // STOCK_H

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Portfolio Class

Manages stock holdings.

Portfolio.h

#include <string>
#include <map>

class Portfolio {
private:
    std::map<std::string, int> holdings; // Stock name -> Quantity
    double balance;

public:
    Portfolio(double initialBalance);
    bool buyStock(const std::string &stockName, int quantity, double stockPrice);
    bool sellStock(const std::string &stockName, int quantity, double stockPrice);
    void displayPortfolio() const;
    double getBalance() const;
};
#endif // PORTFOLIO_H

Portfolio.cpp

#include "portfolio.h"
#include <iostream>
#include <iomanip>

Portfolio::Portfolio(double initialBalance) : balance(initialBalance) {}

bool Portfolio::buyStock(const std::string &stockName, int quantity, double stockPrice) {
    double cost = quantity * stockPrice;
    if (cost > balance) {
        std::cout << "Insufficient balance!\n";
        return false;
    }
    balance -= cost;
    holdings[stockName] += quantity;
    return true;
}

bool Portfolio::sellStock(const std::string &stockName, int quantity, double stockPrice) {
    if (holdings.find(stockName) == holdings.end() || holdings[stockName] < quantity) {
        std::cout << "Insufficient stock quantity!\n";
        return false;
    }
    balance += quantity * stockPrice;
    holdings[stockName] -= quantity;
    if (holdings[stockName] == 0) {
        holdings.erase(stockName);
    }
    return true;
}

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Market Class

Handles stock price updates.

Market.h

#ifndef MARKET_H
#define MARKET_H

#include <vector>
#include "Stock.h"

class Market {
private:
    std::vector<Stock> stocks;
public:
    void addStock(const Stock &stock);
    void updateMarket();
    void displayMarket() const;
};
#endif // MARKET_H

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GUI Implementation (Qt)

Required Tools:

• Qt Framework (Download from official website)
• Qt Creator IDE
• C++ Compiler (GCC, MSVC, or Clang)

GUI Features

• Stock List: Table displaying available stocks and prices.
• Portfolio View: Table showing user holdings.
• Controls: Buy and sell buttons.
• Input Fields: Stock name and quantity.

MainWindow.h

#ifndef MAINWINDOW_H
#define MAINWINDOW_H

#include <QMainWindow>
#include <QTableWidget>
#include <QString>
#include <vector>
#include "Stock.h"
#include "portfolio.h"
#include "Market.h"

QT_BEGIN_NAMESPACE
namespace Ui { class MainWindow; }
QT_END_NAMESPACE

class MainWindow : public QMainWindow {
    Q_OBJECT

public:
    MainWindow(QWidget *parent = nullptr);
    ~MainWindow();

private slots:
    void on_buyButton_clicked();
    void on_sellButton_clicked();
    void updatePrices();

private:
    Ui::MainWindow *ui;
    Market market;
    Portfolio portfolio;
    void updateStockTable();
    void updatePortfolioTable();
};
#endif // MAINWINDOW_H

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Real-World Examples

Educational Stock Market Simulator

A university finance course uses this software to teach students trading concepts. Students practice portfolio tracking, stock transactions, and price analysis in a simulated environment with fluctuating stock prices.

Advantages:

• Provides practical experience in risk management and portfolio diversification.

Algorithmic Trading Prototype

A fintech startup uses this software to simulate and validate trading strategies such as "buy low, sell high" using historical data generated by Market.cpp.

Advantages:

• The team identified a profitable plan with a 15% return before real-world implementation.

Personal Finance Management Tool

Retail investors use the software to simulate investment scenarios, such as investing $400 in AAPL and MSFT, and tracking hypothetical earnings.

Advantages:

• Helps optimize real-world investment decisions.

Brokerage Demonstration Platform

A brokerage firm extends the project with a Qt GUI and real-world price updates, allowing new customers to simulate trades.

Advantages:

• Increased customer sign-ups by 35% due to improved confidence in trading.

Hackathon Trading Bot

A coding competition required participants to build a trading bot. Developers connected the Portfolio class to an API fetching live stock prices, optimizing virtual profits.

Advantages:

• The winning bot used a machine-learning model trained on simulated price data.

Corporate Training Tool

A bank modified the software for employee training, introducing a collaborative trading challenge.

Advantages:

• Improved employee understanding of market liquidity and trade execution.

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This project provides an excellent learning experience in trading concepts, algorithmic trading, and GUI development using C++ and Qt.