Backtesting Data Quality Lessons Learned

Data

Backtesting relies fundamentally on historical price and volume data, and its quality directly dictates the reliability of derived insights; incomplete or erroneous datasets introduce biases that can lead to flawed strategy development and unrealistic performance expectations. Accurate timestamping and synchronization across multiple exchanges are critical, particularly in cryptocurrency where arbitrage opportunities are time-sensitive and data latency can significantly impact results. Consideration of data vendor methodologies, including handling of delisted assets or exchange-specific events, is essential for robust backtesting frameworks.