26 years - too old to get a job in finance?

[Sheen]

Hi,
I worked for 6 months as a market maker/day-trader for a brokerage in Poland, trading shares and futures in the Warsaw Stock Exchange. Later on I was a trader at Saxon Financials in Warsaw for 9 months. Unfortunately, the office has been closed down. I traded DAX and EUR/USD and GBP/USD currency futures. I was profitable, but I cannot say that my results were superb.
Now, I am in the UK, working in a completely different industry. I am 26 years old and have a non-finance-related degree obtained in Poland.
Are they any ways for me to get into a prop firm or a bank/brokerage? In the latter case, what qualifications should I achieve to have at least a slight chance of getting a job? I've heard of IMC and SII certificates but are they really appreciated by the employers?
Also, do employers normally require any evidence which would back up what CV contains? In other words, if I lie about my age, experience , will I get away with it?

Thank you all for advice

 

[chinabean]

lol, don't lie about your age, they can't ask you anyway!!! plus 26 is not so old that you can't get in somewhere. don't lie, don't lie, don't lie........about your age (you'd have to show your passport at some point to confirm your identity anyway!)........do exaggerate where you can get away with it. If you believe in your ability, exaggerate about your experience a tad....most people do anyway!

Reckon you have more chance gettng into a prop firm than a bank/bro just cos of the job market....there are loads of junior bank traders out there that got canned after 12-18months that have experience that will be more relevant so competition will be tough to get a bank job. If you want to get a qualification then SII certificates or IMC will only last for a finite time, it is probably better to start something like a CFA. Alternatively, you could consider doing a masters (preferably full-time) and then go through the graduate route....most european banks are very open to 27-28 yr old post-grads joining them after a few yrs experience and the completion of a good masters. Some U.S banks are too but a lot only recruit fresh undergrads or very experienced post-grads onto their desks.

 

[barryb]

Your best chance of getting a trading job, but also the least secure, is to try and get backing from a prop firm/arcade. They don't pay a salary but you'll be on a minimum 50% profit split generally. If you have some funds to weather the first 6 months while you're finding your feet, then this could be the one for you. However pls note, the success rates are very low, and only the most disciplined, dedicated and honest with self individuals will survive.

 

[ychu066]

Your best chance of getting a trading job, but also the least secure, is to try and get backing from a prop firm/arcade. They don't pay a salary but you'll be on a minimum 50% profit split generally. If you have some funds to weather the first 6 months while you're finding your feet, then this could be the one for you. However pls note, the success rates are very low, and only the most disciplined, dedicated and honest with self individuals will survive.

why most disciplined, dedicated and honest ppl would survive ?

 

[spreader_legger]

Do you know to what extent that they would back you? I mean if you have a reasonable track record, would they be willing to put say 200k in your account?

Also from what I gathered they tend to prefer high trading volumes from the commissions earned, so I guess trading style may also be a consideration behind their choice.

Your best chance of getting a trading job, but also the least secure, is to try and get backing from a prop firm/arcade. They don't pay a salary but you'll be on a minimum 50% profit split generally. If you have some funds to weather the first 6 months while you're finding your feet, then this could be the one for you. However pls note, the success rates are very low, and only the most disciplined, dedicated and honest with self individuals will survive.

 

[barryb]

why most disciplined, dedicated and honest with self ppl would survive ?

As that is the bare minimum which you need to give yourself a chance of succeeding.

 

[barryb]

Do you know to what extent that they would back you? I mean if you have a reasonable track record, would they be willing to put say 200k in your account?

Also from what I gathered they tend to prefer high trading volumes from the commissions earned, so I guess trading style may also be a consideration behind their choice.

They don't give you a lump sum in your account as such, you'll be given higher limits as you build your account up. Or if you've got a track record you'll probably have to demonstrate you can make the money which you say you can on small size, and then after you've done that they'll up your limits considerably. Some places are very aggressive with size, it all comes down to how much you can handle.

 

[spreader_legger]

I wonder how that affects your Money Management. Keeping each trade down to 1% of your capital would still require you to have a sizeable amount in your account to make a decent living out of it ..... then you have to consider desk costs etc.

overly aggresive size would certainly increase probability of loss to ruin

They don't give you a lump sum in your account as such, you'll be given higher limits as you build your account up. Or if you've got a track record you'll probably have to demonstrate you can make the money which you say you can on small size, and then after you've done that they'll up your limits considerably. Some places are very aggressive with size, it all comes down to how much you can handle.

 

[barryb]

I wonder how that affects your Money Management. Keeping each trade down to 1% of your capital would still require you to have a sizeable amount in your account to make a decent living out of it ..... then you have to consider desk costs etc.

overly aggresive size would certainly increase probability of loss to ruin

If you deposit your own money you can of course do the risk % model for position sizing, but it's done differently when you're backed. You will already have a downside £$ limit agreed before you start where you or the risk manager stops you out for the day if that amount is reached.

You're not given larger size until you have proved you're consistently profitable, and that you can handle the size as i said previously.