What are the different types of traders that are generally seen in the Prop trading industry?
@nithin shared an interesting article that offers a glimpse into the diverse world of prop trading. It explains 10 different types of traders where each trader brings a unique set of skills and perspectives to the table.
I’m sharing a condensed version of the article but you must read the full article to enjoy it completely.
1.The Contrarian — Hanzo: Hanzo predominantly traded countertrend and believed that market turns were imminent. He was known for his contrarian views and was often betting against the prevailing market trend.
“Whatever the market is doing, bet on the opposite–that’s the Contrarian mantra.”
2. The Spazz — Laser: Laser was known for his impulsive trading style, often entering and exiting trades rapidly without a clear strategy.
3. The Whale — Mr. West: Mr. West was known for taking massive risks and was unfazed by big numbers. He was a high-risk trader who felt alive only with a significant bet at stake. -
“Mr. West states that his best ability is to take pain and that big numbers don’t bother him.”
4. The Poker Player — Heath Wilson: Heath had a background in high-stakes poker and transitioned to equities trading, becoming one of the top traders.
“Heath didn’t do small-time kiddy pool play… he played real high stakes.”
5. The Global Macro Guy — Rowboat: Rowboat had a prestigious background and focused on global macro strategies, considering big-picture factors like politics, international trade, and crises.
“Macro Guys talk about big picture stuff: Historical asset relationships with interest rates.”
6. The Glitch Hunter — Riggs: Riggs specialized in finding price dislocations and arbitrage opportunities. He was known for his unique approach to trading.
7. The Quant — Clayton: Clayton was dedicated to automated trading and had a strategy focused on price dislocation during the closing imbalance on AMEX stocks.
“Clayton, who specialized in automation. He was a losing trader until strictly dedicating himself to automated trading.”
8. The Guy Who Trades Once A Month — Soup: Soup had a unique approach where he would only trade once a month, leveraging his knowledge from traditional finance.
9. The Number One — Hopeland: Hopeland was considered the top trader at WTG, known for his exceptional skills and trading acumen.
“Hopeland was a top-3 manual trader and also doubled as a top-3 automated trader in the monthly PnL reports. It is rare to be good at both. He traded inefficiencies. He traded directional. He traded special situations. He did it all. In the present day, he now runs his own WTG-backed hedge fund.”
10. The Penny Stock Trader — Me : guys cornering low float stocks, who would trade sub-$1 biotech’s as his primary strategy or someone would just spend his whole day accumulating 20 micro-cap positions…
