we could all go down to the marriot in west london and have a quiet chat with the hft mob at their wanky seminar this month. anyone up for it??
Quote from Businessman: Desk fees and related costs really hurt in a low profit year. I know a prop trader who made around 100K last year in london. After desk fees, profit split, taxes, accountancy fees and paying his own rent+general living expenses he had nothing left over. He literally needs to make a 100K in trading profit each year just to break even. How many people can consistently perform under that kind of pressure.. its different if you have a few 500K+ years under your belt with a good chunk of it still banked, but most don't. This is exactly my point, and purpose of my original post (although I have found the various debates interesting). Most prop traders in London understand the model inside out as you would expect. But, unfortunately the model is now a heavy hindrance. £100k trading account is roughly breakeven. As we all know markets have become far more efficient and far more sophisticated as has the machinery. We all tend to concentrate on the 4-5 markets we have always traded. Unfortunately, everyone else does the same. Many of the bigger traders have reduced their trading volumes and now more or less just event trading, hitting the market in size (and betting the house) on huge events, a strategy I've seen many times destroy accounts. I will continue to prop trade but I've now just started to test spread betting accounts. Not sure if you have these in the States. So far, very interesting. Thousands of trading options, reasonably narrow spread, speed seems fine (yet to be tested fully during high volatility), no desk cost and applied costs, and tax free. If all goes according to plan I may be able to stop getting the 5am train into the city.
In February 2012, the international derivatives markets of Eurex Group recorded an average daily volume of 8.7 million contracts (Feb 2011: 10.3 million). Of those, 6.0 million were Eurex Exchange contracts (Feb 2011: 7.1 million), and 2.7 million contracts were at the U.S.-based International Securities Exchange (ISE) (Feb 2011: 3.2 million). In total, 179.3 million contracts were traded, thereof 125.8 million at Eurex and 53.5 million at the ISE. Eurex Exchange recorded in its equity index segment, the largest product segment, approximately 58.3 million contracts compared with 58.4 million contracts in February 2011. Futures on the EURO STOXX 50® Index stood at 21.4 million contracts while 23.9 million options on this index were traded. Futures on the DAX totaled 3.0 million contracts while the DAX options reached another 5.2 million contracts. The Eurex KOSPI product reached 2.6 million contracts, compared to 138,000 contracts year-on-year. The equity derivatives (equity options and single stock futures) segment at Eurex Exchange reached 30.0 million contracts (Feb 2011: 34.4 million). Thereof, equity options totaled 19.8 million contracts and single stock futures equaled 10.2 million contracts. Equity derivatives volume y-o-y is influenced by the change of contract specifications: In the first quarter of 2011, Eurex Exchange increased the contract size of most equity options and single stock futures to match international standards, with the effect of potentially lower turnover in these products. The adjusted monthly volume figure in the equity derivatives segment in February 2012 would have been approximately 35.4 million contracts under the previous, old contract specifications. The interest rate derivatives segment of Eurex achieved 36.5 million contracts (Feb 2011: 48.6 million). The Euro-Bund-Future reached 14.6 million contracts, the Euro-Bobl-Future 8.1 million contracts and the Euro-Schatz-Future 7.7 million contracts. The Euro BTP future totaled more than 300,000 contracts, the Short Term Euro-BTP Future more than 38,000 contracts. The Eurex segment dividend-based derivatives totaled approximately 691,000 contracts; single stock dividend derivatives peaked at a new monthly record of around 266,000 contracts. Commodity derivatives reached around 80,000 contracts. Turnover of volatility derivatives grew by 76 percent and achieved 243,000 contracts. Eurex Repo, which operates Swiss Franc, Euro Repo and GC Pooling markets, recorded 236.4 billion euros average outstanding volume in all repo markets (Feb 2011: 282.3 billion euros). The Euro Repo Market totaled an average outstanding volume of 160.7 billion euros, an increase of 36 percent y-o-y. The secured money market GC Pooling recorded an average outstanding volume of 129.5 billion euros, an increase of 40 percent y-o-y (Feb 2011: 92.6 billion euros). The Swiss Franc Repo market reached 75.7 billion euros. In February, the electronic trading platform Eurex Bonds, which rounds out Eurexâs fixed-income product range, recorded 11.0 billion euros (single counting), an increase of 36 percent y-o-y (Feb 2011: 8,1 billion euros). In January 2012 the volume was 12.0 billion euros. The volume traded on the Power Derivatives Market of European Energy Exchange (EEX) amounted to 93.9 Terawatthours (TWh) in February 2012 (Feb 2011: 91.0 TWh). On the EEX Spot and Derivatives Market for natural gas the volume traded amounted to 8.9 TWh (Feb 2011: 4.1 TWh). In February, a volume of 7.3 million tonnes of CO2 was traded on the Spot and Derivatives Market for Emission Allowances compared with 12.9 million tonnes of CO2 in February 2011.
i also notice how the bund is taking longer each to day to get the same volume. at 1pm to 2pm it was kind of 1/2 million. now it takes nearly 330 to get the same volume.
Down again I see, if by following the Traders addage "Let the trend be your friend" then I can truly see the EUREX totally drying up in 2013. As my fellow office colleauge would say "This is DOGSHIT".
Why isnt the BUND moving at all?Its just died a death- the Dow future has moved 67 ticks in the same time as the BUND has moved 3 ticks.How can we make money off a product which doesnt move? the BUND has turned into an utter dogshit product, no movement and the volume has died a death ( especially after 4pm GMT- Only 8k contracts have traded in the last 40 minutes).Its the same as yesterday- 2 big moves- then stuck in a range of 15 ticks for 80% of the trading day- total dogshit contract. Not surprised 80% of all of the experienced guys have now left the product and its only the mugs or newbies ( who dont know any different or told to trade BUNDS ) that remain who are stuck in a rut or scared to try new products.