Studying for the FINRA exams right now, but getting even more confused at how S&T does business. I'd love it if someone from inside the business could explain couple things for me as I usually learn better by actually understanding rather than rote memorization.
Broker-dealers, i.e. banks, can execute trades either as a broker or a dealer. Seems like brokers are agency traders (I'm guessing sales traders in this case because no book) and dealers are market-makers because you trade with the clients / counterparties through your own book (inventory). With a hidden profit violation rule, you cannot charge both commission (broker) and mark down / up (dealer) on a trade. However, don't salespeople and traders make money by charging a commission and earning a profit on trades, respectively? Is it that S&T is set up so that salespeople are brokers and traders are dealers, where salespeople "match" the counterparty to their own trader? Being in the same firm though, wouldn't this still be a hidden profit violation?
Also, if dealers have their own book, i.e. use firm capital, isn't this considered prop trading and be a violation of the Volcker Rule? I also understand that some speculation is allowed, but if I were to speculate on a certain asset and sell them to a client after the price has appreciated, wouldn't this be front-running? Even before that, wouldn't speculation itself be against the Volcker Rule?
Lastly, S&T clients include institutional investors. They have their own researchers and traders there though, so what is the need to pay a bank for their S&T services, other than, say, for prime brokerage? With electronic trading platforms on the rise (or even back when Bloomberg Terminal was all there was), wouldn't institutional investors trade directly on the platform?
Really appreciate anyone who can help me understand the structure and system behind S&T better.
