Hey there... I just had a quick question about the declaration of bankruptcy, and how it would affect one's chances of getting into the financial industry in general, and into a trading position in particular. I have had a few years experience (2-3) swing trading with retail accounts, and did reasonably well at it a few years ago... however, a couple of years back I decided to take a risk and sunk all of my money (and more) into starting my own business, which has now pretty much failed. I'll spare you the gory details, but basically I am now in a position where it is prudent for me to declare personal bankruptcy to alleviate the large financial burdens which are being placed on me largely as a result of this business failure. My question is this: if I wanted to pursue a career in the financial industry from this point onwards, and in particular as a trader, how much effect would declaring bankruptcy have on that effort? I wouldn't be going broke because of a long-term personal mis-management of money or because of trading losses, but because of a single business failure taken on an admittedly large risk. Are there any restrictions (officially stated or otherwise) on people entering the financial industry that have declared bankruptcy in the past? I have a few connections that could probably get me into a sales position in a hedge fund to start with in the near future, and what I'm wondering is whether that effort could be blocked by having declared bankruptcy (official rules, etc.). How would it affect the future, both short and long term? What about the differences in trying to eventually move into a trading position at a prop firm at some point, possibly becoming a research analyst at a fund, staying in sales department of said fund, or maybe eventually moving into a more official money management role in the future? For that matter, would being an undischarged bankrupt for the next 9 months affect my chances of getting into a potential sales role right away? (Of course I wouldn't have anything to do with the trading side of things at this place.) Any replies are appreciated... for the record, I live in Canada and plan to stay there for the long-term future. I'm not sure about whether it would be necessary for me to take the Series 7, but I suppose it could be if I eventually wanted to work as a remote trader in the US market... input on that would be good too. Thanks in advance...
Iâm aware of this post, but I am snowed under now with the workload from the upcoming tax season and I am not able to prepare a response to this question at this time. Thank you for your understanding. I invite other participants in this Forum to give their input to the question that was posted so that others may benefit from our collective wisdom.
Any brokerage firm, investment bank, or securities dealer these days not only conducts credit checks but also drug testing as well at the point of hiring. As for obtaining a Series 7, you must be sponsored by a broker/dealer in order to take that exam. You also must file a Form U-4 with the NASD that will ask you if you have ever filed a BK. Having filed a BK should not interfere with a Series 7 registration. An "undischarged" BK however might be a problem. As I indicated earlier you must be sponsored by a broker/dealer in order to take the Series 7 exam and they might have an issue with hiring you if you have a BK. Perhaps some others from ET might want to chime in on this. As for prop firms and trading prop capital, I believe that prop firms will not let a trader trade proprietary capital if they have a BK. As for hedge-funds, it is probably up to their discretion. Some funds wouldn't care less, especially since a Series 63, 7, or 55 is not usually required for a buy-side fund, as opposed to a broker or "sell-side" position in which the employee usually deals with the public. Thus, a hedge-fund might be less restrictive in their employment criteria.
This probably depends on the firm, but the ones where you need to put in a capital contribution really do not care about a BK. It's your own money your losing.