I think for a beginner who has capital $.01/share is a very fair deal. I wouldn't pay any more than that. Will be very difficult to turn the corner!!!!!! Firms like Worldco, Bright, Generic, Echo, L&S are able to give you a penny a share. Also try to be in an office that has profitable traders so you can learn something. When I started trading I moved to NYC. But paying over a penny is like over paying, unless you get very personal attention from a good trader!
Worldco charges no monthly fees, and for zero capital contribution we can give you a substantially better deal. (You will do no worse than 1.4 cent 70% payout at Worldco with zero money up front). Generic gives the most god-awful rates in the industry, and I have been aggressively recruiting traders from them. However, if that's the only choice you have, then by all means go for it, you can always relocate later.
Vinny- no , i don't think so...if you don't do any volume, they're still getting some cash from you for the desk fee so i don't see why they would ask you to leave...but to be honest I don't know...I have the contract but haven't gone over every detail yet.
I have also been inquiring about prop trading. www.pointdirex.com, they also offer prop trading for 1.0/share, with a 90% payout. They have their own proprietary software. I am right now using their Level One software and my god this software kicks a%$. Real fast order routing. Right now i am trading my own account. I am inquiring with them about trading prop. and using their Pro or Platinum product. And they only charge 79.99 for software fees. Its not bad. I am also looking for prop at schonfeld and worldco, but the only advantage at pointdirex is that i can possibly trade remotely. Also i would not go to any place, trade prop, and pay 1.8 per share and get only 65 % payout. If my money is at risk then i better get 90 % or better, with good leverage. I think 1.2 or less is the most reasonable. Anything higher i would stay away from, and a payout great than 85 %. Thanks Hans
If you're willing to put money up, get 100% payout, under a penny/share and if you trade remote only $200 month. This is part of our new "Bright-at-Home" trading platform. Since you are recently out of school, we may be able to discuss a lower entry amount (lower than the standard $25K). For the average trader the difference between 1 cent and 1.8 cents is around $10,000 per month, that is rough to overcome...and even if you did, you would only get 65%. Generic is a good group, very reputable, but if that is the deal they offered, I would consider raising additional capital if at all possible. We bring in hundreds each year from the "outside" and do a good job developing them into traders (if I do say so myself), and we keep our people by staying competitive. Anyway, good luck, look out for all the bs out there, and if you would like to discuss anything about the industry as a whole, feel free to call me.
Vinny There are no minimums at Echo. The desk fee for remote traders/office traders makes up their cost. The high volume traders more than make up for all of the small volume traders combined. They would rather have you profitable and trading just 200 shares a day than have you lose money and blow out. Small volume traders who are profitable start to grow their account size and soon become regular volume traders. Robert Tharp
RTharp, this was originally posted by uptik: $600 per month for in-house(office);$100 per 100,000 shrs over 400,000 shrs is rebated back...so if trader does 800,000 a month would get $400 back...cost would only be $200...anything over 1 mil shares = no fees...is this fee structure currently correct?
Swinger Just a thought. While I realize you are just out of school and don't have a lot of money, you shouldn't feel "ripped off" if a firm doesn't offer you the lowest rate on the street. Rates vary from firm to firm and even from branch to branch within firms BECAUSE COSTS vary. Most traders never consider how expensive it is to run a quality operation and lose sight of the fact that at the end of the day, prop firms as well as all brokerage firms are in business to MAKE MONEY. Prop and DAT firms exist not because of altruistic reasons but to earn profits.
I realize this. I don't feel as if I am getting ripped off. What eventually convinced me to go with Generic was that I feel that I will get a quality education there. The office is small and the traders there seem helpful and knowledgeable. I appreciate all the different opinions that were displayed here, but I have made my decision. Thank you everyone for your help.