Talking points on this podcast:
- How Lauren Simmons became the youngest full-time female trader at the NYSE, aged 22
- The qualifications and skills that equipped her for the trading floor
- The future of algo trading
This time on Trading Global Markets Decoded, our host Martin Essex is joined by Lauren Simmons, who aged 22 became the youngest full-time female trader at the New York Stock Exchange and only the second African-American woman in the Exchange’s history to hold such a position.
In this episode we focus on Lauren’s experiences that led her to trading on the exchange floor, her views on the qualifications and skills that professional traders need, and more. You can listen to this podcast by clicking on the YouTube link above or by using one of the alternative platforms listed below.
Becoming the youngest female trader at the NYSE
The discussion begins on Lauren’s educational background and the road to choosing trading as her occupation. “I majored in genetics and I realized while writing my senior thesis that it wasn’t something I wanted to pursue, as it wasn’t as technologically advanced as I hoped,” she says. “But one thing I did know is that I wanted to move to New York. [So] on December 13, 2016, two hours after I graduated, I hopped on a plane and moved to New York.”
From there Lauren networked extensively on LinkedIn, promoting her statistics minor to try and find opportunities. The hard work paid off when was offered an equity trading position at the NYSE. “I didn’t go to the floor thinking I was going to be a trader; I was very vocal about becoming a financial analyst because of my statistics background,” she says. “But I was excited to take the opportunity that was given to me, and I took the risk of putting myself in a position that I knew nothing about and going from there.”
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Trading on the exchange floor
What was it like to trade on the exchange floor? “It was exciting and scary, a mix of emotions. As an equity trader you have to make decisions in microseconds.
“Trading is definitely a job where you can’t hide behind anyone else if you make a mistake. You have to be accountable and explain the reason why you made that decision…but you can’t dwell on worst-case scenarios when you’re on the floor.”
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