Inside the House of Money: Top Hedge Fund Traders on Profiting in the Global Markets, Revised and Updated

Chapter 15

The Currency Specialist

Anonymous1

Currency Fund Manager London

The business of foreign exchange has evolved considerably since the introduction of the euro, which focused world economies on three principal currency zones. Simultaneously, many foreign exchange traders no longer want to be limited to just currency trades, which is logical considering that interest rates are embedded in foreign exchange trades held longer than one day.

The foreign exchange manager presented here has a rich background in interest rate trading, having started as a broker of interest rate products and then as a Eurobond market maker before moving into proprietary risk taking and then as fund management. He has held various jobs in and out of financial markets at many different institutions before landing his current role as a chief investment officer (CIO) at a several billion dollar hedge fund within the asset management unit of a bank. This manager’s mandate now includes currencies, interest rates, and their derivatives, but with a strict focus on liquidity.

When complimented about being a well-known star trader in the financial world, the manager seems unimpressed. “I was meant to be a rock star,” he claims. He does not mean this in the metaphorical sense—he used to sing in a rock and roll band. His imposing stature applies to his suave physical demeanor as well as to his presence in the markets. And he is supremely confident. It is not difficult to imagine him holding court behind a high-end ...