I'm not aware of the details of Victor N's fund but you are certainly correct that most hedge fund partnerships contain a mandatory windup proviso. A manager with his back to the wall might be tempted to go for it if he felt the windup proviso was about to be triggered. I'm not saying that was Victor's motivation, but anyone considering a hedge fund should pay attention to that clause.
The Brazilian Straddle: (loosely quoted from Harris's Trading and Exchanges) Consists of a large mkt position held against a ONE way airline ticket to Brazil in the breast pocket. If the market position proves profitable, the trader sells the ticket and comes back to trade tommorow, if not off to Brazil, let the investors clean up the mess. Anyone done one of these straddle's besides me? j/k :eek:
Perhaps its just my personality, but I prefer the guys that are doing things well and getting the job done rather than writing books that are part autobiography, part fiction, and pretending they are educational.
i wish i would have seen that CNBC segment. the descriptions of him are interesting. the richest trader i know personally is also very very aloof and almost "rainman" like. my wife and i attended an event with him and his wife--it was bizzare, the guy was literally led around by his wife and would ask her what to do in various situations. if i didn't know what this guy did, where he lived, etc. i would be convinced he had some serious mental issues. these thoughts go back to a previous post of mind regarding trading affecting other areas of your life. any thoughts ?? best, surfer
This is a very interesting. You have to really separate the performance from the personality. There are studies that suggest that extreme development of the brain in certain areas can lead to deficiencies in other parts, thus the genius quant being puppeted around in social situations. I guess the goal is to attempt to maintain that balance which is normal for each of us, while gleaning some useful info from those who have performed so well for so long. I think his point yesterday was that he needs a lot of time to make people understand what he is saying. He is trying to do so with some analogies, but with only a few minutes on CNBC - his best advice is that you should buy and hold. Of course, that's the last thing he would do, but he didn't really have time to tell you why. I am anxious to hear what some think of his book. I am torn between buying it and not. I am a fan of selling deep OTM premium (Ansbacher/Niederhoffer) and have done so for many years myself, with some hedging at crucial points. I would like to know if the book contains more tangible references than his prior work.
surf- I guess it's the mad genius deal. I will say this, having worked with the mentally ill for many years, I would much rather be poor and mentally stable than be wealthy and unable to socialize. If confronted with a decision: a) a clear mind. surrounded with family and friends. making $20,000 a year. or b) $5,000,000 a year. alone...inability to be a social being I'd pick choice (A) everytime. No second guessing. A side note: I'm currently reading "education of a Speculator". Some of his insights are interesting. And myself having a lower middle class upbringing in Queens, I do enjoy his childhood accounts. It does seem that he breaks rules that would have kept him from blowing up. And that's our lesson. Back to the grind. Happy Trading.
KTM, that was a good post. The one thing which has me a bit concerned is when you say " I am torn between buying it and not. etc" On the one hand you talk about balance and then you seem to have an enormous conflict, a problem out of all proportions as to whether or not you should spend $ 21 on a book by someone whom (at least so I believe) you believe has 'some' worthwhile contributions to make??? Regards, freealways
And besides that, what kind of man plays squash? Ever see a squash player crush a beer can on his head? Didn't think so...