I've done some research and have been reading many posts regarding Schonfeld and other prop. firms, and wanted to get a better feel of that company. There was this thread (back in May) about Schonfeld closing a bunch of offices, losing a lot of money and traders, and is redeveloping/reorganizing their buisness structure and trading models, and is a crappy place to work ... Most of the other threads however, have praised this place saying it's probably one of the better places (along with FNYS and Heartland - some also mentioned ETG) to work, especially if you're a newbie. (excellent training, no capital required, etc.) What's the latest scoop? Is it a decent place to work? Any advice?
my opinion is that they either can't compete on prices, or they are not attempting to. meanwhile, they are losing good traders and gaining traders with minimal experience. they're kind of living in the past, thinking it's 1999/2000.
I've heard they're not hiring new traders since this spring. They're only looking for experienced ones. Don't know much about rates though.
i talked with them. i have several years of profitable experience. they couldn't even come close to other deals out there. if i was a newbie and wanted to learn how to trade, i would be pounding on there door for the training.
I've also heard that their training is excellent. I don't believe they're are hiring right now. day8, How bad was their commission schedule? Was it more than 1 cent per share? Maybe they quoted you a high rate because they are only concerned with bringing fresh traders that they can mold. Actually, (now that I think of it), I thought Schoney traders weren't charged commissions and paid based on their GROSS profitability (30-50%). I'd be interested in knowing what the current situation is there.
they offered me 20% of my gross, or something like 50% of my net after paying .004/share, or 70% of net paying .008/share. whatever worked out most favorably to the trader is what the deal would be.
i never traded there. i just talked with them to find out what kind of deal i could get. but i have to say, their office in los angeles was really nice. it definitely had the feel of a legitimate operation. however, it kind of fealt like a ghost town. there were like 10 different trading rooms, each of which probably accomodated about 15 traders. yet there were only 2-3 traders in each room. if they offered a payout of something like 50% of your gross, with no expenses, i think they would grab a ton of good traders. i know they self-clear, so it seems like they should be able to offer a more competitive deal. i hope they do, because it seems like a great atmosphere, if they could fill the place with traders.
If you are looking to trade in LA there is a Worldco office near Santa Monica that is run by a good trader that takes the time to teach all his traders and if he likes you he might give a draw. He has a better place than Schonfeld. Shonfeld is a losing firm now and you should stay away.