Which trading desk fits me best?
Hi everyone,
I have just finished my FT IBD training and realised that IBD would not be as intellectually engaging as I had envisioned. The concepts taught during class are too easy to grasp (a lot easier compared to my undergrad) and I am always the first to finish assigned tasks despite not having a finance/econs background.
A little bit of background on myself: I graduated at the top of my engineering cohort at a very well-respected school. It's been a while since I left school (took a gap year out to travel). In university, I realised that I had the ability to pick up complex concepts a lot faster than my peers. I didn't cover a lot of maths though - most of my modules were on design-related stuff.
Now I am wondering if trading/structuring might be a good fit for me. Thus, I have some questions which I hope you guys could help me out with:
a) I do not know much about trading currently, except that I have been encouraged by some S&T analysts to explore the field since it requires more intellectual rigour. Could someone please recommend some trading desks that would be a good fit for my skills? I know that commodities requires more knowledge of macroeconomics and is less quantitative than fixed income. Should I read up on credit derivatives/rates/fixed income instead?
b) Is there a desk that trades junk bonds? If so, is this under fixed income? How quantitative is this desk?
c) Last but not least, how should I go about making the transition from IBD to S&T? Is it better to do it within my bank, or should I apply to other banks directly?
Thanks and really appreciate your comments.
Ok for b its called High Yield or distressed debt :P and yes FI is more quantitative but this is about all I can answer sorry :P
best bet is to move into a corporate derivatives platform (they have both equity and fixed income at most banks) within IBD at this point. you can work with rates/commodities/inflation/etc on the fixed income side and do converts/equity-related hybrids on the equity side. you can leverage that experience to make contacts with folks on the actual trading floor and then jump ship to an open position once one becomes available.
to go to HR and try to move now will only hurt both your short/long term prospects at the bank. better to go to a related group on the IBD side, network with the folks on the trading desk and then make the switch. if you do things right, you'll have the institutional backing of the firm to make the career switch within the firm and have contacts with your peers on the IBD side.
from GS's IBD recruiting website, you'll see the derivatives/structuring roles for corporate clients.
http://www2.goldmansachs.com/careers/our-firm/divisions/ibd/how-were-organized/financing-group.html
good luck.
Things you should know: 1) If you're really a quant, shoot for a derivatives desk. Equity derivatives/exotics on the equity side, and any structured credit/volatility/structuring role on the fixed income side will be a good fit. 2) Network with trading desks. Make appointments and grill them on the market and their product. It helps to know a thing or two about what they trade before trying to switch into their field. 3) Junk bonds trade actively. They're known as "high yield" bonds. Most high yield traders, in addition to trading the cash instrument, trade CDS on their sector. Knowing a bit about this product will help. 4) Brush up on your bond math. If you have a product knowledge, be able to explain why junk bonds (for instance) trade on a YTW basis as opposed to a YTM basis.
Hope this helps!
DeltaHedged www.deltahedged.com
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