Andover is worth considering for a new trader starting out. There are so many offices/subdivisions. System is the best as far as executions and reliability. No contract is also a plus. My policy is no contracts, i have made that mistake before and strongly stress staying away from contracts. P.M. me for more info. Good Luck in whichever company you choose.
I know of a few prop firms that are great if you are interested in trading NY stocks. I have never heard of ETG, must be a very small shop.
ETG has 300 traders, spread out in over 20 offices. not the biggest, but surely not the smallest (i believe worldco and andover are in the 700-800 range, not sure about anybody else). if you want to risk your own capital, you can get a higher payout elsewhere. open a brokerage account at andover (can't understand why you only get 90% there) or bright (at least you get 100%). opening a brokerage account is what you're doing after all. my deal is, i'll probably get 80% this year if i hit my goal. i pay .8 and $20 for bullets, and put no money down. there are people i started with that are down 10-15k and are still there. what would andover or echo do once your 5k is done? ask you for more of course. the only place ETG is currently hiring is in Atlanta, and their training seems very hands on. that said, in general, trading is something you have to figure out for yourself, so if you want someone to hold your hand, and further guide your hand to do the right things, it'll be tough to find. good luck. my training was nothing special, though i'm grateful someone took a chance on me. they do not enforce the contract. it's more of a protection for them if you try to blow out your account with a huge trade in desperation move, but that's just my opinion. but, it's not my opinion, but a fact that they don't come after you. good deal for a beginner. also, for experienced traders, i'm pretty sure you can come in as a customer, like you do at echo, bright, and andover, and obviously get a better deal, since they aren't risking anything on you. not 100% sure about this, but pretty sure.
it's not technically a retail account, but when you go there you put down 5k. you get 90% payout, but you're responsible for 100% of the losses. they determine your buying power by what's in your capital account. it's basically a way to trade with 20:1 leverage (that's your buying power). instead of paying margin, you give them 10%. but, it's not a prop deal IMO, it's a brokerage account. even though they call it that for regulatory purposes. maybe, just maybe, when that 5k runs out, they will float you for a little while IF you're churning enough, and up enough gross (generating them commission profits). i'm not saying it's a bad deal at all. it is what it is. it's a pretty decent deal if you're an established trader willing to risk your own money. their software gets great reviews, they self clear so they can offer good rates, and you can get good leverage for your money. just saying, you can't compare ETG's deal with Andovers, unless ETG starts asking for money down, and when that's up, asks you to put more money down, which is not what their current business model is.
Are u kidding me, open a retail with SIPC and only get 90%. That is soooo not legal. Probably someone from that company mispoke or the trader who interepreted 90% misunderstood. Re: ETG being small that no one has heard of it. ETG possibly with Bright and First NY started all of this back in the mid 80's. Maybe not the same name but nonetheless the same principals- back when prop was really prop and no one took deposits.
I know for sure if you open retail SIPC ensured account you get 100% and your buying power is 1:4 with 25K minimum. It does not matter what company Andover or any other. If somebody tells you anything different about retail account I would be very surprised.
I interviewed with ETG in atlanta and they would not hire me. Lol, i went somewhere else and made 7 figures in first year. For this reason i support firms that give everyone a chance. How can one possibly know who will make a good trader. It is impossible to know.
Nice story silk. Could you imagine the dingbat recruiter who turned you down. Probably feeling the pain of not getting 20% of your 7 figures. Sorta like the Harvard admissions guy who turned down Bill Gates.