I'm starting a new job clerking on the CBOT. I'm looking for anyone with any advice on the operation or their experience in the pit. Hope to hear anything anyone can tell me. Thanks Make sure you can be in the market tomorrow.
I was with DT trading(213 is the clearing #) in the 30 Year Bond Option Pit for 8 months. Than became a independent clerk for the 30 yr Bond Pit working for Laurence Bonefitto 454. If you are having trouble getting a job go to Lind Waldock. There test for hiring is "Can you fog a mirror?" After a few weeks it's easy then to move to a different /better paying firm. What are you looking For? Rtharp
I'm looking to start trading for myself on the floor, I just don't know the wait or possibilities for getting a backer, as it sounds like the most common route in. I'll have about 20K in 12 months or so. I was told from the trader that I'm clerking for that I will need about that much and then I need to prove to a backer that I know what I'm doing in there. rtharp How feasible does that all sound, am I getting my hopes up, or will I be clerking for years?
You are getting into an area that has a very limited future. Exchanges are all going electronic, the US is definitely dragging its heels but it will succumb eventually. Being a local floor trader and trading electronically off floor are two very difference things. The things you learn on the floor are no help in electronic markets. Have you thought about what you will do say in 2 years when the floor closes?
One of the reasons I left the floor is I saw that the market was moving electronic so I agree. The question is when??? I seem to hear that every year but no change. If you want a backer it will usually take at least 6 months for some others to notice you. Talk to the traders who have been there for years. You will notice a high turnover rate of clerks and traders.....an interesting thing though is the successful traders are constantly there year after year. Figure out who they are and get into their heads quickly. That's when you will succeed. It's a good experience. I disagree with Zentrader on 2nd part the experience is helpful to any type of trading. rtharp
KGB, Just curious,.. Would like to know why you picked working on floor over say based at home/office type of setup.. Regards, Knyyt
KGB, The floor pays albeit not all that well compared to the stress and the "chores" you may have to endure. I spent 2 years trading Midam, IDEM, OPT in this order. Yes, I find what I learned there was interesting but not that relavant to EDAT level 2 know-how or trading succesfully. Yes there are some overlaps. The membership is falling so is the price. The reason is the computers made headway even the stoggiest of the institunion - the CBOT. Having a backer is no different than trading on a credit card at home. There are ties. Also you may try some deal like the firms will have trader (usually options) to to delta neutral trading for %50 with their money. (I think this is different than a *backer*. If I was forced to live in Chicago again I would only trade upstairs. I found that I learned nothing from the folks down there. They all want to buy on a bid and sell on the offer,<b>except there are not enough orders to go around</b>.(if you trade small lots) you better off doing this type of a thing on the Globex, or NYSE stocks. You'll never learn if a big seller is Merill or who because it so noisy confusing and the actions are always obfuscated and masked. I thought I would have some "intelligence" from being down there - I found none,(may be it was me.....)