Kill Switch

The IKillSwitch interface provides a mechanism for detecting critical execution conditions and halting trading activity.

Purpose

A kill switch is used to protect the system from cascading failures, excessive losses, or abnormal behavior by forcibly stopping order flow.

Interface Definition

class IKillSwitch {
public:
  virtual ~IKillSwitch() = default;

  virtual void check(const Order &order) = 0;
  virtual void trigger(const std::string &reason) = 0;
  virtual bool isTriggered() const = 0;
  virtual std::string reason() const = 0;
};

Responsibilities

• check(...) allows pre-trade validation for dangerous or outlier orders
• trigger(...) forcibly activates the kill switch with a descriptive reason
• isTriggered() returns current status
• reason() provides context for the shutdown

Use Cases

• Manual or automatic shutdowns under emergency
• Circuit breakers for latency spikes, volume anomalies, or rejected order bursts
• Integration with IOrderExecutor or IRiskManager

Notes

• The kill switch is a critical risk control tool in production systems
• It is expected to be queried before submitting any order