So You Want A Forex Job?
You have your winning strategy, and your now keen to know what your options are in terms of careers in the Forex market or what Forex job is available to you?
You have come to the right place! In this article, I will explain to you the differences between some of the career paths and forex job opportunities that are available today.
Forex Job 1 – The Retail Trader
Becoming a retail trader is the most simple way to get into forex markets as a career. Why? Because you’re not accountable to anyone, there is no tests and you are basically working for yourself.
A retail trader is effectively anyone that trades for themselves, with their own capital.
Retail traders have by far the most flexibility, because they are able to trade their own strategies at their own will. However, there is one HUGE downside to being a retail trader.
Capital…
As a retail trader you are limited to what you can earn by your initial investment capital. So if you have a spare 10k sitting around, you may be able (with some hard work and very good discipline) be able to forge yourself an income, however, if you only have a 1k account to get off the ground as a retail trader, it may take a little while to actually earn enough to quit your day job.
You also have to remember that almost 80% of retail traders fail, this is usually down to lack of demo trading and perfecting their strategy before going live, but what it does mean is that in this forex job, your own personal funds are at risk.
How Do I Become A Retail Trader?
Step 1: Perfect Your Strategy! This is the most important phase, without a winning and consistent strategy, you will not make it as a retail trader. You should be confident on demo before going live. Check out our Strategy Guide to find a strategy suitable for you.
Step 2: Register with your broker. See our broker comparison, choose the one that suits you best (I love IC!) and register your account.
Step 3: Start Trading!
Forex Job 2 – The Prop Trader
The prop trader is a forex job that involves working for another company.
The benefits of this are that you trade with the companies capital and therefore losses are absorbed by the company, and you will often have access to an account much larger than your own, giving you more opportunity to make larger sums of money.
However, the downside is that you are often restricted in strategy, and you also have a very strict set of rules to adhere to when trading, which often includes small risks in every trade, a maximum loss limit and even days and times when you can or cannot trade.
It is not easy to get a contract with one of these companies, however, if you do qualify, and your strategy is consistent, it can pay off handsomely.
Once over prop traders worked solely for banks and investment firms, however, lately, there has become a trend for private investment providers to hire prop traders also. There is often a test or evaluation stage involved with working for these companies, which often has a fee associated with it, however, the fee is often refundable if you quality (each company has an individual policy on this)
How Do I Become A Prop Trader?
Simply apply for an evaluation programme at a prop company. I have listed two reputable companies below offering these schemes.
Forex Job 3 – The PAMM Trader
Pamm traders are almost a hybrid of the first two forex jobs, you trade for yourself, with your own capital, with full control over your own strategy, however, you also have people’s accounts connected to yours where trades are ‘copied’ over.
As a result of this, you recieve not only your own winnings, but a pre determined percentage of anything you win for your ‘followers’ also.
It is easier to get into being a PAMM trader than a prop trader, but it can take a while to build up a following where you’re trading a large account.
You also have the pressure of knowing how many people are following your account, which can effect your traders mindset.
If your interested in becoming a PAMM trader, I suggest you check out our article on PAMM accounts here which will give you more information.