Hi guys, I am currently working in a prop firm that trades one single future product and the market is very bad. None of the traders there are being profitable. So I went and took stock courses with another prop firm and I asked them if they were hiring. He asked me how was my company doing and what was my best net profit. I replied to him saying that the market is bad and no one is making money. My best net profit was 2000$ in one month. He said we are more lenient into taking experienced traders in the stock market and that if I were accepted to join I have to put a small capital. What do you guys think I should have approached it in terms of speaking of the firm I currently work with so that I have more chance of being hired and maybe without putting a capital? I think I sounded like being a bad trader to him. Thanks
I think it sux to have to put up your own capital just to fake trade, or trade for someone else. Do they guarantee you a return of your capital if they decide you are not a good fit for them?
Props that accept capital contribution take on anyone who will pass S7 or S57 IE they are an equal opportunity employer. You'll have no chance at firms like First New York, Jane Street etc..
Prop firms who ask for a capital contribution aren't "hiring" but instead are allowing you access to firm capital by a factor of 10 or 20 of your initial contribution. You can try a combine with TopStepTrader and pay an entrance fee to gain access to a live account with an 80/20 split after passing a series of simulator tests and keep trading futures. My personal opinion is once you trade futures it will be rather difficult to adjust to day trade individual stocks. If you want to get "hired" at an equities firm, then you are probably better off getting your advisor license or applying for a job at a broker who can sponsor you for a Series 7 and Series 63 license.
Yes they guarantee a return of my capital. I thought it's a good first step to learn from professionals since it's not easy learning on your own. The only problem I have is if what I said to them was viewed as a negative thing
What do you mean a factor of 10 or 20? you mean 10k or 20k? They asked for 10k and I can take them back if I decided to leave. I've been only trading for 1 year and I would like to learn to trade stocks I think it's a better fit for me. I am in Canada and we have different licenses for that. My plan was to work with a prop firm to learn how to trade stocks in the meantime I can study for my licenses. The only problem I have if maybe what I said to him turned him off because if you are experienced the prop firm doesn't require capital from you
Capital contribution firms let you trade with 10x or 20x of your capital. So if you put up 10k, then you can day trade with 100k, or up to 200k, with "first loss" of your capital. In other words, the firm gives you access to their capital on a larger scale than if you were to open up a margin account. If you lose, then the firm simply deducts the losses from your initial capital contribution. If you win, then the firm simply takes its cut. Also the firm makes money on the markup of the commissions. Firms can mark up commissions if they are registered broker/dealers. I'm not sure about Canada, but if you trade with U.S. prop firms, your capital contribution is locked up for 1 year as per SEC rules. So you could leave anytime, but you'd have to wait for the lock up to expire if you decided to leave.