What do the analysts here think about trading? (CTA/prop)

Water Cooler Careers
#1

i am proud to say that I was one of the “noise traders”- identified in the official CFTC/SEC Flash Crash Report of May 6, 2010… i was trading the S&P e mini Futures and had a short position from 1145 to 1125 ES points… the actual crash went down to ~1065. id like to think that my single trade of 1 contract caused a chain reaction that magnified the events :slight_smile:

the fact is that opening a 20k account with a discount broker is not enough to make a living “day trading”. BUT if i had 100k right now professional leverage/institutional platform/ exchange connection… ifeel i would have enough equity to really make a serious attempt at prop trading… i dont…

i think you need at least 100k -200k in equity to attempt “day trading” within a realistic risk profile to make an honest living… the idea is that with enough practive you can can aquire the skill level and attract money as an acting CTA… and eventually evolve into HF… thats the most clear and easiest route to ever becoming a HF manager I can think of…

in terms of AUM>> you need over 10million to be taken seriously but with the right background (certifications/track record)… the money will follow.

#2

No…

#3

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#4

That’s an interesting theory. It raises a couple of interesting questions. Can a person support themselves in a modest lifestyle by day trading a $100k portfolio? Can a person raise a fund from $100k to a $10m simply by existing? I think you should blog your next 10,000 hours of prop trading like the dan plan and see where it leads.

http://thedanplan.com/theplan.php

#5

i use the word day trading loosely… my own strategy would be more of (active management of option spreads) holding positions for days/weeks.

as a member of an exhange (leased seat on CBOE) you are effectively trading with negative commission getting paid to add liquidty. i would say i have over “3000 screen hours”… basically 2 years of working the market full time… the 10,000 milestone is more of an urban legend in my opinion. i know enough not to do anything stupid.