Trader

As a trader you have several options of employment; either you work for a financial institution and trade with the company’s credit, earning a set salary and a bonus, or you work for yourself, trading with your own money and credit and keeping all profit.  

There are a few disadvantages to short-term trading. Commission costs and paying away the bid/offer spread, for example, are factors to keep in mind in a trader role. When traders engage in short-term trading strategies to secure profit, high commission fees may be the consequence. But the increasing number of highly competitive discount brokerages are somewhat preventing these costs from being a true issue. Also, electronic trading platforms have tightened spreads in the foreign exchange market. In some countries, such as the United States, there is a disadvantageous tax treatment of short-term capital gains.  

As a trader you are responsible for making prices and performing trades in commodities, equities, bonds or foreign exchange. These trades are usually executed on behalf of investment banks. 

There is a variety of trader roles, which include:

• Sales trader: sales traders function as an intermediary between clients and sales executives. As a sales trader you therefore focus for a large part on the relationship with clients. To secure this relationship, a sales trader presents ideas, secures deals and develops sales strategies. Frequent travelling is often part of a sales trader’s job.
• Proprietary traders: a proprietary trader trades on behalf of the bank. This role knows a range of tasks, which include monitoring market performance, determining market sentiment, informing sales staff on movements and trends in the market and executing trades. 
• Flow traders: a flow trader buys and sells financial products on behalf of their bank’s clients.    

Typical employers of traders are financial houses, investment banks, treasury departments of large companies and exchanges. Overall, the employment conditions of a trading job are very good. As trading requests high levels of responsibility and commitment, great benefits may be expected in return. Traders often earn a generous salary and get large bonuses.  

There is no clear cut education that prepares you to be a trader. However, being a graduate is important to enter a career in trading, as is decent knowledge of commerciality, finance, economics and/or business. An internship or might be beneficial to start a career in sales as it offers you an entry into a business that might offer you a long-term perspective. 

Some skills attributed to successful traders are:

• Decent knowledge of a specific market
• Affinity with economics and business
• Flexibility and a commercial attitude
• Good analytical and communicative skills  
• Being able to work with targets
• Willingness to travel

When you aspire a career in trading, it might be beneficial to keep some factors in mind. First of all, your skillset must match that of a trader, yet is not limited to the standard requirements. You are able to analyze investment opportunities and execute trades. Ideally, you are able to execute and manage trades while minimizing the risks and maximizing profits. You need to be able to perform well under pressure and make quick decisions on the spot. Next to that, you need to be curious; a little research to identity the best investment opportunities will help you further establish your role as a trader. Since trading is a dynamic field, willingness to work long hours is needed for a successful career. Naturally, the required skills are different per type of trade position. Traders connected to an agency might flourish on different skills than those working for themselves. 

There are a lot of jobs available as in this sector. Everywhere in the world there are markets for traders. Below you see an example of some markets/regions were companies are searching for people at the moment based on our vacancies page. 

• South America
• Germany
• United States of America
• France
• China
• Poland
• The Netherlands
• Australia
• Scandinavia
• Italy
• Austria
• Switzerland
• West African region
• Japan
• Benelux
• Spain

While there are a lot of countries that you can work in as a trader, there are also a lot of different markets that you can become a trader in. The list below offers an overview of the specific markets in which we currently have vacant positions. 

• International trader
• Consumer goods
• Cocoa Trader
• Renewable energy
• Biofuel
• Energy
• Metal
• Medical care
• Healthcare
• Finance
• Gas

As a trader, your monthly salary will probably be around €2.000,- to €4.500,-. Of course, this will differ per market and position and does not include the bonuses. Also, your experience level will influence your salary, as does your level of skill.