What are some trading metrics to identify a good trader?

O

OTCkrak

What kind of numbers would get me a job right away at a hedge fund or a legit prop firm like Jane St/ Optiver? I feel like its more important to be able to consistently get base hits as opposed to random home runs.

For example.. Let's say I take a 10k trading account to 100k in the span of 1 year.. Is that impressive?

Are there specific industry metrics that are important for "day trading/market making" that are different from to investing performance formulas like IC Coefficient/ IR Ratio, Sharpe Ratio?

Here is the list I am thinking about, am I missing anything.
profit - duh!
win/loss ratio
# of shares/contracts traded
avg. win
avg. loss
max drawdown
avg. holding period
fees/commission as % of profit
 
The world is not that simple. You have to put in the work. Develop strategies that have edge. Show they have edge and are scalable. Then automate the process. Then you have to sell yourself.

1245
 
1245 said:
Then you have to sell yourself.

1245
More...

Right there is the key phrase "Sell Yourself"!

That is what you need to figure out... What are they buying that you have to offer? Researching a company will tell you a lot about what they want to see. All you need to do is find out what it is and give it to them.

I will warn you about your approach. Be careful to listen to what a company wants and don't assume a track record is worth anything. A lot of firm don't want people coming in who already have a bias toward trading. That can sometimes be a deal breaker.

Many moons ago I interviewed at Schonfeld Securities. I got the trading position with a base salary and that is unheard of. What I happen to know by pure luck is how they were trading. The interview went something like this:

You have 3 stocks you are looking at and need to buy one at the open. One is up 3% the other is up 1% and the third is up 5%. Witch one do you buy?

Most people who read trading books would say the one up 1% because the others are overbought and most traders fade the gap. At that time the stocks that are up the most are the ones that went even further.Any other answer meant no job!

You should also consider Chimera Securities . I met the people there and they really care about their traders success. Besides that there is a small base salary to keep you going. That says a lot about the firm!
 
I'd look for a firm that paid 100k a year guaranteed until you can ramp up your trading to the average et income of 500k a year.

Anything less than that , and walmart greeter starts to look good.
 
Get an audited record. That goes into your CV. The strategy has to be clearly written down and can be implemented in an algo with all logical steps understood. Then there needs to be back testing to prove it has potential to achieve similar gains given past market climates. But is this a joke anyway?

10K to 100K in a year? Is that good? Serious question? First, even if true, I doubt that method is scalable and repeatable, and thus can be implemented by a hedge fund. Further, if you are really that consistently good, why would you work for anyone for a salary and let them have a piece of the cut? At that rate starting capital isn't a huge issue and you're a few years away from being on Forbes' rich list because your trading capital will grow exponentially and you'd be richer than Warren Buffet in a few decades time.
 
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