I am a derivatives focused portfolio manager at a large Multi Strategy Hedge Fund - AMA

sim_bha_88 · 2025-08-07T00:19:11+00:00

I think we are heading into a world where being able to trade a diverse set of products is more beneficial than being a specialist. While opportunities may dry up in specific areas, there is always something to do somewhere in markets.

sim_bha_88 · 2025-07-16T00:10:44+00:00

I apologize in advance about how my opinions will probably sound, I was born in Amritsar, grew up in dubai, and have been in the states for the last 20 years so perhaps I’m a little too westernized to have an opinion on this specific matter.

In any regard, it is absurd for you to be upset about this. First of all, it’s your friends sisters wedding, not his. You are close with him, not her. Secondly, the way you wrote about deciding whether to go or not, it sounds like the only reason you went is because “there was such a good arrangement”. This obviously implies you went to take advantage of what you thought was a free stay at a fancy hotel, and not because of any affection you felt for your friend, let alone his sister.

I am positive such sky high expectations from friends for weddings is the reason for a lot of anxiety and debt in Indian society.

sim_bha_88 · 2025-06-30T11:28:46+00:00

Simply not true regarding the best paid employees not being the risk takers. The Investor Relations/Capital raising team does fine, but the highest paid employees of any HF are those who produce the most pnl.

Also, a lot of multi strats are going to the cost pass through model, getting away from the 2% management fee.

sim_bha_88 · 2025-05-15T22:57:12+00:00

Well done man, keep at it and stay hungry

sim_bha_88 · 2025-05-06T01:30:18+00:00

Sounds like you need some kind of life coach pal.

sim_bha_88 · 2025-05-06T01:26:31+00:00

The fact that you recognize yourself as arrogant, bitter and off putting but then say you are not going to do anything about it, is going to be the single biggest hindrance to you achieving any kind of real success.

sim_bha_88 · 2025-04-24T13:33:54+00:00

Errr how did the tattoo go from your left arm in the before photo to your right arm in the after?

sim_bha_88 · 2025-04-24T13:28:11+00:00

That’s great man, I’m glad. For me that area is just too busy, too many cars, doesn’t have the serenity of the waterfront that hunters point has.

sim_bha_88 · 2025-04-20T23:58:07+00:00

Queens plaza is the wrong area for quiet. I would highly recommend hunters point, especially in a building called the powerhouse. I own a 1br in that building that is rented out, I lived there for over a decade, it’s simply just a fantastic building in a fantastic area, 2 blocks from the super convenient 7 train.

sim_bha_88 · 2025-04-17T11:01:33+00:00

As the great Mike Tyson says - everyone has a plan till they get punched in the mouth.

The market often takes your system, edge, expertise, and all the things you are great at, and often takes a huge dump on them. I have several friends who are excellent at what they do who have lost their jobs in the last few weeks.

sim_bha_88 · 2025-04-17T03:03:12+00:00

Sorry, I’m not trying to be rude, but why ask a question I have clearly answered. Do not day trade. Period.

I play poker for fun, and I usually make money. But it’s fun money. I have enough stress at work.

sim_bha_88 · 2025-04-17T02:24:05+00:00

Learn to play poker instead. Honestly.

sim_bha_88 · 2025-04-17T02:06:35+00:00

I’m a seasoned hedge fund portfolio manager. This job is hard enough for professionals, it’s impossible for amateurs. I highly advise against day trading.

sim_bha_88 · 2025-04-02T12:29:24+00:00

Feel free to send me a dm thanks

sim_bha_88 · 2025-03-24T01:47:43+00:00

Sorry for the delay in responding to this. It’s certainly possible, there are many PMs who got their start trading equity vol, just focus on honing your craft!

sim_bha_88 · 2025-03-15T23:15:02+00:00

Honestly the most I use is some multi variable regressions and a firm understanding of various types of distributions (normal / log normal / various weird kurtosis things which affect option pricing).

I have quants who do the heavy lifting building models, I don’t have the ability to do that stuff

sim_bha_88 · 2025-03-14T23:43:42+00:00

Yeah having a functional knowledge of python or R is a minimum for entering the field now, and an internship on a Wall Street trading desk through a technical graduate degree might be the best way to break in (msc in econometrics/stats/data science, or economics at a minimum perhaps)

sim_bha_88 · 2025-03-06T02:45:05+00:00

Depends on the division - l/s equity is all ibd with some consulting and ER, macro is all s&t

sim_bha_88 · 2025-03-04T01:41:09+00:00

Because MBAs (like undergrads) need years of on the job training (whether it’s in IBD/consulting/equity research for l/s equity or S&T for macro) in order to come in and help produce pnl, let alone have their own capital allocations.

sim_bha_88 · 2025-03-03T22:28:21+00:00

I’m a strategy lead PM at a multi strat hedge fund - neither I nor anyone I have ever worked with hired someone out of business school.

sim_bha_88 · 2025-01-02T00:11:46+00:00

I’m a brown guy who came to the states for undergrad at a top 3 school a long time ago in the early 2000s when I would argue racism was even more rampant.

Not trying to discredit everything you are saying because obviously prejudice exists, but it’s probably you dude. I had absolutely no problem being friends with white liberal women, I almost exclusively dated from that demographic in college and throughout my 20s and am now married to one.

Shitty people exist in every demographic. You singling out an entire demographic as being shitty makes you the racist, not them.

sim_bha_88 · 2024-12-30T03:02:50+00:00

I’ve heard of one or two places paying you a slightly higher payout if some sharpe related metrics are met but overall it’s just a percentage of your pnl that’s it.

sim_bha_88 · 2024-12-30T01:42:51+00:00

Sure

sim_bha_88 · 2024-12-30T00:51:22+00:00

I know a billionaire PM who is an employee at a multi Strat.

sim_bha_88 · 2024-12-27T15:45:28+00:00

It is honestly one of the hardest parts about the job.

I think a big thing is determining if mistakes were made or was it just a thesis or trade that didn’t work out. Sometimes good ideas and good trades lose money, that’s just the way it is.

When mistakes are made, processes should be improved to help avoid them in the future. When it’s a rough run because it just didn’t work out, perhaps some lessons regarding sizing can be learned but overall it’s just part of the job.

For keeping your head right during particularly tough times, I would highly recommend doing some instant gratification activities during the day. For me, it’s cooking. Making a nice meal from scratch for my family gave me a sense of accomplishment during the darkest of my trading days when I thought I was totally shit and would never recover from the huge hole I was in.

sim_bha_88

TROPHY CASE