Prop trading

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I- I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference. Robert Frost Title summarizes the road I've traveled… consultant → intelligence community/SEAL Teams/Special Operations → director of research at a well known hedge fund → tech...

06 Jan 2022

Good evening, Long time passive WSO lurker here that has decided to finally register and engage on the forums. I finished my postgraduate degree towards the end of last year and after several applications and interviews I managed to land a job as a junior trader at a power utility company. I have...

11 Jan 2022

I am an incoming first year in IB at GS/MS/JPM. Honestly, I am not 100% sure why I decided to go through with banking because I am expecting that I will hate it and I don't really think I need a lot of money to be happy. I first got interested in finance when I started trading freshman year of high...

17 Apr 2022

Deciding between two junior year internship offers. The trading firm is very unknown, but I'm told first year TC will probably be around 150K - 175K. SWE is Amazon. Points I'm considering: Compensation is a lot more variable at the trading firm, and I've heard career path is hard to manage if I do...

01 Mar 2022

I'm one month in operations and I'm falling asleep at work; it's not intellectually stimulating. I recently graduated college with a finance degree and could not find a job for the life of me. A little nepotism landed me a job as an operations analyst in NYC, but I want out. I want to become a...

26 Jun 2021

I was never good at math all my life. Not the worst, not the best, maybe average, or slightly below average. I don't think I'm the analytical type really, but I'm not sure about this because I haven't really applied myself enough in this aspect. Currently I work as a Researcher for Data analytics...

19 Oct 2021

Hi all, I'm a junior in college interested in the prop trading space. I'm wondering how would people with more experience view tier 2 trading firms such as Virtu, Flow, IMC, SIG, Akuna, DRW etc. From what I've seen, tier 1 firms that stand out to me are: Jane Street, Citadel Securities, HRT, maybe...

09 Mar 2022

Hi, I am a senior UW Madison student, with a 3.4 GPA in industrial engineering (would be 3.7 if not for freshman year). I want to be a prop trader, in fact I want to be the best trader in the country. I have studied trading for 3 years, and have good stats. My expected value is about 1R per trade,...

05 Aug 2020

Trying to figure out if pursuing a professional masters degree from Cornell in applied statistics is a good idea if the goal is to work for prop shop/quant hf (think jump, citadel, virtu, SIG, akuna, optiver, imc, etc). also wondering how it would compare to the financial engineering masters...

22 Mar 2021

Hey guys! For the context, I'm French, 24 y.o., top 3 French engineering school and top 3 MSc Finance in the UK! That being said, Im coming to you as I plan to redirect from IB - where I was doing Project Finance - to trading. I feel like it's the only field of finance where it will be quantitative...

15 Mar 2022

Warning Long Post Ahead Hello WallStreetOasis, I am a recent graduate of Hofstra University with a bachelors of science in mathematical finance 3.4 GPA trying to get into prop trading even though I am aware that all odds are against me. This is my first post in WSO and it is going to be a long one....

06 Sep 2017

Hey guys. I have a full-time offer from a medium sized quant HF (think 30-60 people and 5 to 10 years of history) and a long 4 month internship from a big trading firm (think jump, HRT, Tower) with the intention of hiring me after if I do reasonably well. I am hesitating a lot, the offer from the HF...

17 Oct 2021

Hello, I recently accepted a graduate quant trader offer at one of the more reputable Chicago prop trading firms. Previously, all my experience had been in software engineering, and I found that the job really didn't satisfy me. I always loved statistics and wanted to pursue a career that seemed...

11 Dec 2021

Quick question: Which prop trading / market making shops would be worth turning down top BB (JPM/GS) trading offer for? Not going to be more specific, but given my educational background, I think I would fit in better at prop trading/ market making shop... (obviously a much higher barrier to entry,...

10 Sep 2021

Hi WSO, I was wondering how hard it is to make a transition from sell-side trading at a "Hedge Advisory" (we do financial hedging for oil and gas companies) to a hedge fund or a prop desk? I joined the company when it was much smaller and have gotten experience in several areas of the business...

27 Apr 2022

I'm in my second year studying Maths at a Target Uni in the UK and I need advice in which one of these two internships to go for: The first internship is in the Markets Division (Cross-Asset) at a Tier 3 Investment Bank in London. The second internship is as a Trading Intern at a high-frequency...

12 Dec 2020

Hi, this is my first post so any help is appreciated. I am a Junior at UW Madison and currently have a 3.3 GPA and am majoring in industrial engineering and Econ. I have been studying trading for two years now, and this summer (did not have a sophomore summer internship), I finally became...

09 Sep 2019

It's time someone at least attempted to shed some light on this group. This is RBC (Royal bank of Canada; Canadian equivalent of GS)'s prop trading desk. The group is apparently very impressive/profitable and even after the financial crisis, when banks were pressured to offload their prop desks, RBC...

06 Feb 2018

I know it's quite a random question but I have some friends that switched to Algo Trading from engineering roles. They've told me how they're trying to find market inefficiencies and capitalize on that. However, isn't arbitrage not possible if markets are efficient? Don't you think that, when algo...

28 Aug 2020

Hello guys, I am currently an agricultural commodity trader at ABCD type of firm. I am thinking of getting into the prop trading industry but I am not sure if my background is a fit as commodity trading is quite different. I am also not from a quantitative background. I have seen that most people...

14 Mar 2021

Hi monkeys, I have been on WSO for a while now. I have always been interested in statistics and mathematics and I believe a prop firms or a S&T role would fit me best. I have been trying to find target schools for these finance roles and I cannot find a good list on WSO. I know MIT and Princeton or...

14 Feb 2022

I'm currently an undergrad attending a target public school and have been seeing lots of trading opportunities being posted on our job boards (DE Shaw, SIG, Jane Street, etc). I'm currently majoring in mathematics and information systems with around a 3.7 GPA and am seeking a full time role. By...

21 Jul 2018

I'm going to graduate from a college that's not even worth mentioning (not even in top 100 colleges) soon and am looking to get into prop-trading. I have self experience in the market. I started individually trading about a year ago but have blown up many portfolios already. I will be only getting a...

23 Jul 2018

We all know that Wall Street is extremely competitive as it is. There are people fighting for summer associate internships at less known banks to gain enough experience in their sophomore year, to then apply for a junior summer associate position at a company like Lazard, (Investment banking wise.)...

19 Jul 2017

Hey everyone, I am very new to this website. Just want to preface this post by saying that I do not feel as if I deserve a job at these top quant trading firms, but I would like to think I have what it takes to make to the first stage... My situation is: - Education: Attend UK target (i.e. Oxbridge)...

10 Sep 2021

I've been a retail trader for a little over 2 years, and have found consistent profitability through trading shares. My goal is to do this independently long term, and quit my engineering job. At this point, I don't feel quite comfortable doing that because I'm not currently making enough in trading...

23 Nov 2020

UChicago undergrad here planning to major in econ and computational/applied math -- anyone have a list of good quant places to shoot for internships at? I have heard the interview process is hella competitive but that pay and worklife balance is relatively good. I am worried about the exit...

12 Dec 2021

Proprietary ("prop") trading is an industry that keeps itself under wraps and as a result, there has never been a great resource for candidates to learn about the industry and how to get past the interviews…. up until now! Wall Street Oasis presents the first guide on breaking into the prop...

30 Nov 2014

Started an entry level job out of college at a market making firm about half a year ago. Was wondering what the process for entry level lateral hiring might be for quants / quant traders / quant researchers. Should I stay where I am for a year? Two years? before trying to make a switch, or is...

03 Nov 2021

Hi all, So I have some thoughts that I have been walking around for a while with... Any input is much appreciated. Two years ago I finished my masters in finance and investments and this concluded my five years of university. I also have a bachelor's/undergraduate degree in economics. Straight after...

27 Aug 2020

Hi all, So I have some thoughts that I have been walking around for a while with... Any input is much appreciated. Two years ago I finished my masters in finance and investments and this concluded my five years of university. I also have a bachelor's/undergraduate degree in economics. Straight after...

26 Aug 2020

PREVIOUS EPISODES: NSFW Episode 1: QE2, Housing, Commodities Here's the link to Bill Gross's November outlook: Run Turkey, Run And to the books we recommended this week: Nature's Metropolis: Chicago and the Great West and The Servile State Finally, here is a direct link to the video along with the...

31 Oct 2010

NOTE: If you have seen a problem before, please don't solve it. This is a thread for posting logic/probability ques, to help people prep for trading interviews. If you have an interesting question that you have heard or thought of, post it to give people practice. I'll post at least one per week....

09 Nov 2010

I'm wondering which prop trading firms pay the best salaries for traders. I want to go into prop trading after college, and I want to decide which firms to focus on in my recruiting. I understand that the more reputable prop firms pay a base salary along with a percentage of PnL. Which firms give...

05 Sep 2015

From what I can gather, trading firms in London and Amsterdam like Jane Street, Optiver, Flow Traders, ... offer graduates a total compensation that comfortably clears six figures. Does anybody have insight into how the pay in Dublin shops (Virtu and SIG) compares (maybe broken down into base, bonus...

28 Feb 2022

So I wanted to give some people hope. I will keep my firm names anonymous, but I want to give people help. I am just going to have some random points, and want people to ask anything or even state if you disagree so we can get a nice discussion going. My Profile: I graduated in 2011 with a...

26 Apr 2014

List, closed, thank you all =) Within 48 hours, we had 130+ applicants and 5 mentors. --Using this thread for a "What do you want to learn/What would help you?" thread. We're going to invite recruiters, MDs, VPs, to speak to mentees, do resume reviews, share contacts, etc. Very excited for this...

22 Nov 2010

After about five years in S+T at various banks and buyside shops, I am starting up a hedge fund based in NYC and focused on Asian markets. Most of the securities we trade are OTC equity and currency derivatives. We commenced trading with 10 million usd in partner capital and have a lot on our plate...

25 Mar 2012

Hi, Basically i have a good job as a s&t 1st year analyst in one of the big US banks. Results are very good and bonuses are up across the board in equities at least. I'm doing well and i like people in my team, but i'm starting to get really bored and the learning curve is flattening much quicker...

05 Mar 2014

The only ones I know of opening up soon are Optiver and Flow in August recruiting for May 2022 graduate dates. Are there any other top/mid-tier firms that have opened up for May 2022? Thanks in advance!

01 Jun 2021

Although this is my first post, I've been a lurker here for 5+ years. I'm in my last year studying mathematics at one of Oxbridge as an undergraduate, looking to apply in London for full time positions as (1) a junior trader at a proprietary firm (not arcade), or, failing that, (2) an analyst in any...

19 Sep 2016

Does anyone know of or recommend a solid remote prop trading firm or course out there? I know it doesn't happen overnight, but have been looking to make a switch to maybe P/T swing trading and at some point (maybe years) down the line jump in F/T. I have a finance/econ background and work in Corp....

06 Nov 2019

I have been using a tool called Uplink to run advanced analytics and provide real time transcripts for Earnings calls and it has been great for me so far. This is definitely something that could be really huge for anyone regularly listening to earnings calls or any disclosures, to be honest. There...

21 Oct 2020

I posted it on the S&T forum initially but realized this is a better forum to post it in. I've been offered a position with the e-trading desk of Morgan Stanley as a strat to develop algorithms that have a direct impact on the PnL, and another job as a Quant Researcher in an options Market-Making...

15 Dec 2021

I guess it was a just a matter of time (and hundreds of millions of lobbying dollars), but now that the laser focus on banker misdeeds seems to be waning, lawmakers are signalling their willingness to dump the Volcker Rule forbidding prop trading at investment banks. So I guess the joke's on those...

27 Mar 2012

Not in real estate, currently a math student Theoretically, is it realistically even possible for one person to start there own prop trading firm? I understand this would mean identifying a strategy, algo development, backtesting, going live, managing risk, and continuous research. Lets assume AUM...

21 Jan 2021

Title says it all. They both seem like great firms. Optiver sounds more committed to having their internship in person despite COVID and the internship also looks very pragmatic - I think I would learn a lot from it. But Jane Street seems like it has a less toxic culture and is more prestigious with...

08 Dec 2020

Yesterday's New York Times ran a piece on the Wall Street slowdown that is getting a lot of attention. The less than rosy picture painted by the article addressed the elephant in the room for many investment banks - deal flow has dropped off significantly and the death of prop trading is going to...

20 Sep 2010

For all you monkeys that enjoyed last week's post…its back! I'm going to finish up with numbers five through seven as promised and next week I'm going to share what I've learned since my time away from the desk and draw parallels to Marketkronicle's "professional" trader. I know what you're...

25 Feb 2013

I searched around a lot but didn't find any relevant discussions on Day Trading firms in Canada. Anyone can provide good reliable firm names currently. I only know of DTTW and Alkaline Capital with whom I am already negotiating but apart from them any other good names

09 Oct 2021