Canary Wharfian
Administrator
- Jul
- 53
- 1
Staff member
Breaking into Global Markets as a graduate can feel overwhelming because the term covers many very different jobs—each with its own mix of skills, hours, and career paths.
Here’s a overview of main departments and roles within GM, their day-to-day, and how to choose a role that fits you.
Traders
What they do: Execute buy/sell orders in different markets (equities = stocks, fixed income = bonds, FX = currencies, commodities = oil, metals, etc., derivatives = futures, options, swaps).
Types:
Flow traders: Handle client-driven trades. For example, if BlackRock wants to sell €500m of bonds, the trader quotes a price, manages execution, and then hedges the risk.
Prop traders: Use the bank’s own money to speculate. Example: betting on interest rate moves by taking large positions in swaps. (Prop desks have been restricted post-2008 at banks, but still exist at hedge funds).
Quant side: Traders rely on pricing models (e.g., Black-Scholes for options, yield curve models for bonds), risk metrics (Value-at-Risk, Greeks), and execution algorithms.
Sales Traders
What they do: Middle point between clients and traders.
Example: A pension fund wants to offload €1bn of equities without moving the market price. The sales trader discusses strategy, negotiates with the trader, and ensures smooth execution.
Quant side: Need to understand market impact models (how large orders move prices), trading costs, and liquidity analysis.
Salespeople
What they do: Pure client relationship management. They pitch products (derivatives, financing solutions), provide color on markets, and win client business.
Quant side: Less math-heavy, but must understand enough pricing/risk to explain why a structured note yields 7% while a swap hedge costs X.
Structurers
What they do: The “engineers” of the trading floor. They build custom financial products for clients.
Example: A pension fund wants downside protection but upside participation in the S&P 500 → structurer designs an option-based product (like equity-linked notes).
Quant side: Heavy use of stochastic calculus, Monte Carlo simulations, PDEs for option pricing, correlation models, credit risk modeling. Structuring = applied quantitative finance + client needs.
Research
Research Analysts
What they do: Write reports for institutional clients (and traders internally).
Equity research: “We expect Apple’s earnings to rise 15%, target price $220.”
Credit research: “Ford’s bonds are attractive at 250bps spread.”
Macro research: “ECB likely to cut rates in Q2 → bullish for EUR bonds.”
Quant side: Use DCF models (equities), credit models (Merton model), econometrics, time-series analysis.
Strategists (a.k.a. “desk quants” or “strats”)
What they do: Provide market outlook and trade ideas with mathematical backing.
Example: “Volatility in FX is underpriced, buy EUR/USD options.”
Quant side: Develop asset allocation models, factor models (e.g. Fama-French), forecast volatility/correlation, optimize portfolios.
Quantitative Analysts (“Quants”)
What they do: Build models for pricing, risk, and trading automation.
Front-office quants: work on derivatives pricing, algorithmic execution, market-making models.
Risk quants: develop models for exposure (credit, counterparty, market risk).
Quant side: Heavy math (stochastic calculus, statistics, PDEs), coding (Python, C++, MATLAB), machine learning for prediction.
Risk Management
Risk Managers
What they do: Monitor positions and limit breaches. If a trader loses too much or risk is concentrated, risk managers intervene.
Quant side: Value-at-Risk (VaR), Expected Shortfall, stress tests, credit exposure simulations.
Compliance Officers
What they do: Ensure rules (like FCA, SEC, Basel III) are followed. Prevent insider trading, money laundering, market abuse.
Quant side: Limited, but some use surveillance algorithms.
Operations (Middle/Back Office)
What they do: Post-trade processes — settlement, matching, reconciliations, reporting.
Quant side: More process/automation than modeling.
Technology
Electronic Trading Developers
What they do: Build trading platforms and execution algorithms.
Quant side: Coding (Python, C++, Java), low-latency optimization, statistical arbitrage models.
Market Data Specialists
What they do: Manage Bloomberg, Refinitiv, real-time price feeds, analytics tools.
Quant side: Work with time-series databases, statistical cleansing, volatility surfaces.
Prime Brokerage
What they do: Provide hedge funds with leverage, clearing, and securities lending.
Example: A hedge fund wants to short Tesla → prime brokerage lends shares, provides financing.
Quant side: Collateral optimization, margin modeling, risk-based capital allocation.
Career Progression
Path: Analyst → Associate → VP → Director → MD.
Compensation:
Analyst: Mostly base salary (€70k–120k) + small bonus.
VP/Director/MD: Heavily bonus-driven (a strong trader can earn multiples of base salary).
Quant-heavy roles (structurers, quants, strats) → higher technical bar, but also high upside in compensation.
To sum up:
Traders & Sales = execution + relationships.
Structurers & Quants = deep math/engineering.
Research & Strategy = analysis + outlook.
Risk & Control = protect the firm.
Tech & Support = make trading possible.
Exit Opportunities
Breaking into Global Markets opens doors well beyond the trading floor. Alumni often move to hedge funds, asset managers, or proprietary trading firms, leveraging their market knowledge and risk-taking skills. Others pivot to private equity, venture capital, or corporate treasury roles, where their expertise in capital markets and deal structuring is highly valued. Some choose entrepreneurial paths—launching fintech startups or boutique advisory firms—while others transition into policy or regulatory bodies, applying their understanding of market dynamics to shape financial rules. Strong technical or quant experience can also lead to roles in data science or technology companies that prize advanced analytics and algorithmic thinking.
Here’s a overview of main departments and roles within GM, their day-to-day, and how to choose a role that fits you.
Traders
What they do: Execute buy/sell orders in different markets (equities = stocks, fixed income = bonds, FX = currencies, commodities = oil, metals, etc., derivatives = futures, options, swaps).
Types:
Flow traders: Handle client-driven trades. For example, if BlackRock wants to sell €500m of bonds, the trader quotes a price, manages execution, and then hedges the risk.
Prop traders: Use the bank’s own money to speculate. Example: betting on interest rate moves by taking large positions in swaps. (Prop desks have been restricted post-2008 at banks, but still exist at hedge funds).
Quant side: Traders rely on pricing models (e.g., Black-Scholes for options, yield curve models for bonds), risk metrics (Value-at-Risk, Greeks), and execution algorithms.
Sales Traders
What they do: Middle point between clients and traders.
Example: A pension fund wants to offload €1bn of equities without moving the market price. The sales trader discusses strategy, negotiates with the trader, and ensures smooth execution.
Quant side: Need to understand market impact models (how large orders move prices), trading costs, and liquidity analysis.
Salespeople
What they do: Pure client relationship management. They pitch products (derivatives, financing solutions), provide color on markets, and win client business.
Quant side: Less math-heavy, but must understand enough pricing/risk to explain why a structured note yields 7% while a swap hedge costs X.
Structurers
What they do: The “engineers” of the trading floor. They build custom financial products for clients.
Example: A pension fund wants downside protection but upside participation in the S&P 500 → structurer designs an option-based product (like equity-linked notes).
Quant side: Heavy use of stochastic calculus, Monte Carlo simulations, PDEs for option pricing, correlation models, credit risk modeling. Structuring = applied quantitative finance + client needs.
Research
Research Analysts
What they do: Write reports for institutional clients (and traders internally).
Equity research: “We expect Apple’s earnings to rise 15%, target price $220.”
Credit research: “Ford’s bonds are attractive at 250bps spread.”
Macro research: “ECB likely to cut rates in Q2 → bullish for EUR bonds.”
Quant side: Use DCF models (equities), credit models (Merton model), econometrics, time-series analysis.
Strategists (a.k.a. “desk quants” or “strats”)
What they do: Provide market outlook and trade ideas with mathematical backing.
Example: “Volatility in FX is underpriced, buy EUR/USD options.”
Quant side: Develop asset allocation models, factor models (e.g. Fama-French), forecast volatility/correlation, optimize portfolios.
Quantitative Analysts (“Quants”)
What they do: Build models for pricing, risk, and trading automation.
Front-office quants: work on derivatives pricing, algorithmic execution, market-making models.
Risk quants: develop models for exposure (credit, counterparty, market risk).
Quant side: Heavy math (stochastic calculus, statistics, PDEs), coding (Python, C++, MATLAB), machine learning for prediction.
Risk Management
Risk Managers
What they do: Monitor positions and limit breaches. If a trader loses too much or risk is concentrated, risk managers intervene.
Quant side: Value-at-Risk (VaR), Expected Shortfall, stress tests, credit exposure simulations.
Compliance Officers
What they do: Ensure rules (like FCA, SEC, Basel III) are followed. Prevent insider trading, money laundering, market abuse.
Quant side: Limited, but some use surveillance algorithms.
Operations (Middle/Back Office)
What they do: Post-trade processes — settlement, matching, reconciliations, reporting.
Quant side: More process/automation than modeling.
Technology
Electronic Trading Developers
What they do: Build trading platforms and execution algorithms.
Quant side: Coding (Python, C++, Java), low-latency optimization, statistical arbitrage models.
Market Data Specialists
What they do: Manage Bloomberg, Refinitiv, real-time price feeds, analytics tools.
Quant side: Work with time-series databases, statistical cleansing, volatility surfaces.
Prime Brokerage
What they do: Provide hedge funds with leverage, clearing, and securities lending.
Example: A hedge fund wants to short Tesla → prime brokerage lends shares, provides financing.
Quant side: Collateral optimization, margin modeling, risk-based capital allocation.
Career Progression
Path: Analyst → Associate → VP → Director → MD.
Compensation:
Analyst: Mostly base salary (€70k–120k) + small bonus.
VP/Director/MD: Heavily bonus-driven (a strong trader can earn multiples of base salary).
Quant-heavy roles (structurers, quants, strats) → higher technical bar, but also high upside in compensation.
To sum up:Traders & Sales = execution + relationships.
Structurers & Quants = deep math/engineering.
Research & Strategy = analysis + outlook.
Risk & Control = protect the firm.
Tech & Support = make trading possible.
Exit Opportunities
Breaking into Global Markets opens doors well beyond the trading floor. Alumni often move to hedge funds, asset managers, or proprietary trading firms, leveraging their market knowledge and risk-taking skills. Others pivot to private equity, venture capital, or corporate treasury roles, where their expertise in capital markets and deal structuring is highly valued. Some choose entrepreneurial paths—launching fintech startups or boutique advisory firms—while others transition into policy or regulatory bodies, applying their understanding of market dynamics to shape financial rules. Strong technical or quant experience can also lead to roles in data science or technology companies that prize advanced analytics and algorithmic thinking.