Crypto Charts

Crypto Charts is a Service that connects to cryptocurrency exchanges and delivers three types of market data in a single package: historical and live OHLCV candles, real-time tick data, and Depth of Market (order book). All data is pushed into MT5 as custom symbols that behave like native instruments, accessible on charts, in indicators, Expert Advisors, and the Strategy Tester. Traders who prefer MT5's analysis environment can use Crypto Charts to work with cryptocurrency markets using the same tools, indicators, and workflows they already know.

The service runs in the background without being attached to a chart.

Features

WebSocket Integration

Market data for Coinbase, Binance (Spot and Futures), and BitMEX is delivered via WebSocket, providing continuous low-latency updates without repeated HTTP requests.

Real-Time Tick Data

Tick-by-tick trade data is streamed from all supported exchanges and stored directly in MT5. This enables tick-level chart analysis and tick-based backtesting in the Strategy Tester without any additional product or configuration.

Depth of Market (Order Book)

Live order book data is captured from all supported exchanges and fed into MT5's Depth of Market window. Bid and ask volumes at each price level are updated in real time, allowing traders to monitor liquidity directly alongside their crypto charts.

Historical Data on First Run

On startup, the service loads OHLCV history from the configured start date. Data is stored in MT5 and available for the Strategy Tester immediately after the initial download.

Automatic Gap Recovery

If the service is restarted or the connection is interrupted, it resumes from the last stored bar and fills any missing bars before continuing live updates.

All MT5 Timeframes Available

Historical data is downloaded at M1 timeframe and live data is received as ticks. All native timeframes are available, so every exchange supports the full range from M1 to MN1.

Full MT5 Instrument Behavior

Custom symbols support all standard MT5 chart operations: indicators, templates, drawing tools, alerts, and Expert Advisors.

Strategy Tester Ready

Once historical data is populated, Expert Advisors and indicators can be backtested on crypto symbols using the built-in MT5 Strategy Tester.

CSV Export

Chart data can be exported to CSV at any time using Ctrl+U.

No DLL Required

The service uses only the built-in MQL5 networking functions. No external libraries or DLLs are required.

Supported Exchanges

All exchanges provide OHLCV candles, tick data, and Depth of Market.

• Coinbase — Spot, Derivatives (WebSocket)
• Binance — Spot, Futures (WebSocket)
• BitMEX — Derivatives, Testnet (WebSocket)
• Poloniex — Spot (REST)
• Bitfinex — Spot (REST)

Symbol Names in MT5

Custom symbols are created with the exchange name appended and appear in Market Watch under the Custom group:

• Binance Spot: BTCUSDT_binance
• Binance Futures: BTCUSDT_binancef
• Coinbase: BTC-USD_coinbase
• BitMEX: XBTUSD_bitmex
• BitMEX Testnet: XBTUSD_bitmex_testnet
• Poloniex: USDT_BTC_poloniex
• Bitfinex: BTCUSD_bitfinex

To open a chart, right-click the symbol in Market Watch and select Chart Window, or drag it onto an existing chart.

Required Setup

Before starting the service, open MT5 Tools > Options > Expert Advisors and enable "Allow WebRequest for listed URL". The exact URLs required for each exchange are listed in the blog post.

Parameters

Coinbase

• Chart History Data Start: Date from which historical data is loaded.
• Symbol: Symbol as listed on Coinbase (e.g., BTC-USD, ETH-USD, BTC-PERP-INTX).

Binance

• Market type: Spot or Futures.
• Chart History Data Start: Date from which historical data is loaded.
• Symbol: Symbol as listed on Binance (e.g., BTCUSDT, ETHUSDT).

BitMEX

• Market type: Live or Testnet.
• Chart History Data Start: Date from which historical data is loaded.
• Symbol: Symbol as listed on BitMEX (e.g., XBTUSD).

Poloniex

• Chart History Data Start: Date from which historical data is loaded.
• Symbol: Select from the built-in dropdown list.
• Update Frequency (s): Polling interval in seconds (default: 2).

Bitfinex

• Chart History Data Start: Date from which historical data is loaded.
• Symbol: Select from the built-in dropdown list.
• Update Frequency (s): Polling interval in seconds (default: 5).

Notes

This product does not use DLLs and is compatible with VPS environments. The service must be started from the Navigator panel (Services section) in MT5 and cannot be attached to a chart.

WebRequest is not available inside the Strategy Tester. The service must run on a live terminal to populate data. Once the symbols are populated, the stored historical data is fully available for backtesting.

For questions and support, use the comments section of this product page or contact the author via the MQL5 private messaging system.