Is it wise to get a TRADING job at a bb?
What do you think of a trading position at Goldman,MS .Is it wise to pursue it long time . IS trading a dead end job ? And how are the exit opp?
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If you like trading then get into IB for a couple of years and make the switch to a HF. You make more money, have better exit opps and will generate a network filled with people in various industries if you change your mind.
Op asked What do you think of a trading position at Goldman,MS . Is it wise to pursue it long timeI IS trading a dead end job ? And how are the exit opp?
Trading is dying much quicker than IB, trading has a limited skillset while banking has a more general skillset that can be used in other areas of finance , the exit opps are better for bankers than traders and if OP still wants to trade in the future he/she can go from IB to a HF. For the long term banking is a much better option than trading.
trading is not a dead end job.....IF you are good at it
if you suck...then trading will spit you out...and then you'll need to figure out something else to do with your life.
These questions are so annoying. Let me ask you First; have you got the offer? You know what desk? what asset class? is a rotation? second; if you got the offer, why you decided to apply? I assume someone applies for trading jobs because they like SnT or what? was just for the sake of applying to a BB?
Trading IS NOT a dead end job.However, is a job that is changing a lot with the years and for some asset classes margins and spreads are very tiny now, but if you are good you can make very good money I want to specify also that the comment that suggests to switch to HF is completely inaccurate ( no surprise an MnA intern wrote that). HFs are now having their worst period in a while and the legal restrictions you have in terms of competency as well as the big pressure nowadays' markets bring are not easing the picture. You can make way more money: true. But how many of them are now generating alpha? Also, turnover is dreadful hence if you are not good you can say goodbye to your trading career very soon. Usually HF is the dream, I agree, but giving such comments without a background or giving some info is rubbish
and don't think the spread between payroll for flow business traders and HF is this wide (esp if we are comparing BB vs dodgy family offices or some HFs)
These “do you have an offer?” questions, while warranted in some cases, often are not necessary. Sure, if there’s some hardo asking whether he should pick GS TMT or just go straight to KKR, give him some heat. On the other hand, there’s no need to harass a kid for asking about general trends in an industry. I think it makes sense for him or her to ask whether or not trading for an IB is a declining industry before he commits the significant time and effort to win an offer.
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Never understood why one of the strongest arguments against pursuing a S&T career is that you don't have as strong exit opps as IB. Truth is, only reason people put so much weight on IB exit opps is precisely because most people go in already wanting to leave.
Trading is one of those jobs that you either love and can make a career out of it, or you can't. Hours are generally great, and pay is good if you are good.
Eh, hours aren’t the greatest but it’s definitely better than investment bankers. I see guys in the office coming in at 6:45am and already trading and staying til 5pm. The exotics guys are here even til 6:30pm to run their risk. When I was at a hedge fund, I was forced to come in at 3am to trade European market and as soon as 8:30am hit, I was forced to trade US market and then I left at 7pm. It was horrific. I guess it all depends on what products you trade.
trading is not really a "job"...its more a vocation. when i trade hgome home, i'll sit in front of my screens for 12 hours a day...and at the end of the day...be amazed that any time has passed at all.
You can look at my previous posts for my view. I've been in the industry for about 5 years and I've spent time on all macro desks that take a lot of prop risk at a major BB (where I am now). I quite enjoy trading/markets and will likely to be doing in some form or another for the rest of my life. However, I don't really see it as a "career" as it used to be.
To sum it up, the future of the industry itself is not great (both sell-side and buy-side). But, if you spend a few years and learn a few things (ideally how certain markets work and how to trade prop)and get out at the right time, you'll learn some skills in risk management and "trading" that you can do on your own while doing something else as a career.
If you care, I would say trading physical is a bit different in that while margins are also very thin (or sometimes bordering on negative) for any liquid product, you learn a pretty broad set of skills that would do you well in any sort of sales or industrial role.
Price risk is usually less of a worry, until it isn't, and in those times you may have to make some very big decisions using instruments that are a whole lot less liquid than futures (ie convincing customers and suppliers to change the way you price things for instance).
Credit risk is probably the biggest thing you have to watch in physical. Given the margins, you can do decently on widgets 1 through 19 only to lose it all and then some on widget 20 because your counterparty won't pay you back. You might say there are insurers and banks to cover that kind of stuff but pull that off more than a couple time and your cost of funds/insurance will make it impossible to ever make money.
So at the end of the day, same all-consuming, never off market focus. Sometimes find it hard to shift gears on a Friday night and my book is still pretty small.