REFCO Trading Services et al

[vaxxy]

Hi,

does anyone have experience with these trading houses such as REFCO, Advance Trading Group, Futex (I think these particular 3 are all closely related but there are many more in London)?

I have a friend who worked for one before but was 'made redundant' due to performance. When he started, they gave him 3 months training then let him trade live. He got a £30k basic and % of any profit (for non-Londoners, £30k is not a great salary for a financial job in London especially if you like to eat food).

I am wondering if anyone else has worked in this kind of place and can they share their experiences (or anyone else with information).

From those which I have looked at, they seem to use the CQG package for trading and charts (although some say you get a wide selection of software). Does anyone have experience with CQG? It sounds as though you don't see $ figures in this package?

Any information much appreciated.

Thanks,

Scott.

 

[mikeyk]

With these types of jobs, the fact that someone is paying you a salary is a massive bonus. Quite often YOU would have to cover your living costs for approx 6 - 12months, which in london is going to be at least 12k. YOU would have to cover your desk fee's until you were profitable which is going to be approx 10-18k. YOU would have to put some or all of the trading capital up 5-25k. So you can see that if a company is paying you anything its a rather good deal.

I'm not trying to be a tw*t but so many people come onto these boards with the wrong attitude and pre-conceptions. The better outfits out there can give you an education that money can't buy. I dont know anyhting about advance or futex, but if you get a start at REFCO i'd take it. They have a good reputaion, great facilities, and seem to have good support.

 

[vaxxy]

Thanks

Many thanks mikeyk,

I may drop REFCO a line at some point. I'd be interested in taking a look around the facilities if they're willing.

"..people come onto these boards with the wrong attitude and pre-conceptions."

By this do you mean they tend to incorrectly judge these companies as being no good?

Thanks again,

Scott.

 

[mikeyk]

I think thats definatley the case. There are quite a few sharks out there.

Also trading at a prop firm or an arcade isn't like working for a bank. Most of the time you are effectively self employed, so really its like starting your own business and should be treated as such. When you think about it in those terms if a high street bank was willing to offer you a loan to cover your start up expenses of a new busines and give you money that you dont have to pay back, to live on for 12 months you'd be really happy.

 

[charliechan]

lol - arcades like refco will pay 12k there abouts.

proper prop shops and banks MAY pay up to 30k - but probably you must be an oxbridge grad to get in.

 

[vaxxy]

Hi,

had a better look around the site now and found loads of threads on this (obviously wasn't searching for the correct thing previously.. it's the hangover).

I think for now I will stay in the relative safety of a large institution but I can see that, provided care is taken, there exists benefits for new and experienced traders. I'm sure anybody that has learnt a bit about the markets and the financial industry in general knows how ruthless it can be and these prop firms are no different.

Thanks,

Scott.

 

[vaxxy]

charliechan,

he was paid £30k and he was an employee of the firm. I don't know what kind of degree he has, if any. He was hired on a recommendation.

 

[charliechan]

what firm was he at?

dont forget, graduates are especially prone to confusing their sense of self worth and what an employer is willing to pay for their 'proven' worth/experience.

i doubt he was in an arcade like mac or ghco. bank maybe.

 

[vaxxy]

charliechan, don't know what firm but I'm definately going to find out and report back. He was trading money markets.

Is it easier to make a profit working from an arcade?

 

[SOCRATES]

The problem is many of these have spreads that are not so narrow, making the jump over the bridge that bit more challenging.

 

[bundbaby]

profits or costs

so true... its about the training offered, followed by personal aptitude and a dedication to trading. Its not about desk fees, round trip cost - its about putting on profitable trades.
In other better to pay £2 for a round trip on a profitable trade, than 10p on a losing one