Anybody on the board know anyone in this business? I’m a prop trader now and looking for some insight on getting into that trade. Order execution/ market making is on its way out and I need to start thinking about what’s next. Any info would help. Thanks
On to the headhunters it is!!!
what info are you looking for? its a great product to be involved in but will be tough to break into if you are currently working on a product that is moving toward automation (assuming you trade equites). also depending on what type of prop trading you are talking about, getting onto a big banks swap desk is going to be tough.
I figured that would be the response I’d get. I think it will be tough to break into no matter what product I’m working on currently. I don’t think that trading equities makes it any harder. I thought maybe it would be an advantage in a way. Any gig making big money is going to be a good ol’boys club. I’m just looking for an invitation to the party really.
jax26, are you in jacksonville?
no nyc. rob dont let my comments discourage you, the move is definitely possible but it is difficult.
Played golf with a guy who said his girlfriend’s kid went to a great east coast private college, got straight A’s, and landed a job after graduating trading swaps for a large bank in San Fran. This guy told me they started him at 50, 3 months later gave him a 30 g bonus, upped his salery to 80. Next bonus season they gave him 103 g’s. The guy also told me this kid only works 9-10 hours a day.
That’s another thing I’m afraid of. Trading equities is the easiest way to make six figs, and whatever I move on to will require more hours, probably for less $$$ at first.
does trading equities sound a lot like being a professional gambler?
Hey Frank, I talked to WaterHouse last night to open an account. Getting rid of Etrade. Any stock tips?
from what ive seen you can make a lot more money trading IR derivatives than you can trading equities. of course there are exceptions to every rule.
Trading is a lot like gambling…but it’s great fun and you can make quite a bit if you are good. Unfortunately RegNMS is the last straw and it’s just harder and harder to make money. That’s why I want to get into IR derivatives…less regulated…probably will get more regulated now after the “credit crunch” and the debt market is so much bigger than the equity market. Lot’s of potential for profit there.
I don’t know about that. I think Reg NMS just made it a lot easier for us computer geek/quant types to make money. What don’t you like about Reg NMS?
I trade institutional and retail orderflow, and the retail customers are the people REgNMS is protecting. It’s completely changed the way an order can be handled. It put a lot more risk on us. Institutional flow is still profitable, but the retail orders always were a nice cushion. I’m not saying we used to do shady things, but now most of the retail flow is handled riskless principal.
But then what does Reg NMS have to do with your trading? Reg NMS may seem like it’s going to protect retail customers (and it probably does to some extent) but I think it is just opening up the way for more small-scale computer based trading operations. I think it’s going to help me sink SAC. Well, maybe not this year.
Unfortunately, I think that is too long of a conversation for a forum post. We are finding ways to take advantage, but the money just isn’t what it used to be. Hence my reason for starting this thread. I’m looking to move on and get out of Bore-lando, and just trying to get some insight on if anyone knows someone in the credit derivatives market and how they got in.
On another front…I think SAC will come down sooner or later, apparently there’s been some funny things going on over there.