Where are the Forex Millionaires/Billionaires?

[sambeyer]

I have been studying forex for a few weeks now and something that still buggs me and to which i can't find an answer is the following.

Other than the famous Soros, i don't know if any uber rich guy that made his fortune in the Forex market. By uber rich i mean a billionaire, but "just" knowing of a few multimillionaires who run some Forex investing fund would be enough. Maybe i haven't searched enough, but i can't find anything about it.

I know if super rich people who made it through businesses (obviously), trading stocks, options, futures, but not one single forex trader (who made his fortune primarily through it; mentioning how Buffet invests in currencies now and then doesn't count).


Why is it? And then i see all the supposed big shots in the Forex investing area, and they all became speakers, or working for companies, or became "miracle forex programs" sellers. They seldom mention how much they actually made through forex.



Am i wrong? Can you name super rich forex investors of the top off your head (or are YOU one)??

[TheRumpledOne]

I know one

It's not me ( yet ).

[sambeyer]

Ok my first post was made when i was in a bit of a hurry, now let me elaborate a bit more on my point.

My point basically is that apparently making bigger amounts of money in forex is harder than in many other types of investments (if you're not a big bank or something), like in the stock market, commodities, futures and options, opening/buying a business, and the sort.


I mean, where are the forex funds, owned by previous forex traders (wouldn't that be the natural course for a forex investing expert who wanted to take the next step?)? What i found is that the experienced forex traders, instead of opening a fund, become brokers (or, as i said in my earlier post, become forex speakers charging a lot of money, make seminars, sell products, work for big banks as forex investors -why don't they trade for a living?-and the like).



Ok maybe i forgot a few points, unfortunately i need to go now but i want to let it posted, just give your opinions. Maybe i'm completely wrong, i hope i am, but well.. let's others with more knowledge than me think.

[ForexMonk]

Something to factor in is that in regards to being both accessible and affordable to the public, the other markets have a 20-30 year headstart. The retail forex market didn't really exist until 2000 and it's just rapidly growing now. So obviously you would find more people who publicly reveal they are gazillionaires from other other markets simply due to the numbers game.

[akeakamai]

I think that when you start making a lot of money, you suddenly don't want everyone to know that you are super rich. Its a security issue I bet

[tymen1]

I think that when you start making a lot of money, you suddenly don't want everyone to know that you are super rich. Its a security issue I bet

Yes, you are exactly correct here Akeakamai.

I always tell everyone never to post your live pips.

The whole planet is watching.

You may be subjecting yourself to not-so -benign influences!!

It is for you own safety not to post live pips.
But you can always post "demo" pips and thus disguise your gains.
There are also other ways to disguise your gains.

But in any case, humility is required in trading, and posting large live pip gains is a pride problem.
So stay humble, suitable for trading, and keep your pips to yourself.

So now you see why you may never meet a forex millionare.

[Tess]

I mean, where are the forex funds, owned by previous forex traders?

What i found is that the experienced forex traders, instead of opening a fund, become brokers - why don't they trade for a living?-and the like).

Where exactly did you unearth this revealing information to deduce your findings from?

Unless you have first hand, or very close second hand knowledge or experience of the subject matter you post about, then your musings are nothing but assumptions & conjecture.

There are heavy duty hedge funds, corporate trading accounts (CTA’s), Investment Funds (with varying degree’s of financial clout) & assorted institutional entities who actively & aggressively ply their trade in the Foreign Exchange markets every day.

Most of them are dual or multi-layered operators, FX being just part of a collective instrument based execution model.

You’re kidding yourself if you think the majority of these firms will be shouting from the rooftops on retail bulletin boards about their daily business activities. And unless you know exactly where to look or who to speak to, you won’t have a clue who they are or what they’re up to either.

They’ll be one or two individuals who interact with these entities active around the popular boards, but you won’t get anything out of them unless they care to divulge it. You definitely won’t hustle information from them about their institutional activities, earning/wealth standing or any other private information.

As with most successful business participants, these folk prefer to remain under the radar. Sure, they’ll offer advice & assistance if they care to, but you’ll only get to know what they want you to know – no more!

Why the interest anyway?

[sambeyer]

Where exactly did you unearth this revealing information to deduce your findings from?

Unless you have first hand, or very close second hand knowledge or experience of the subject matter you post about, then your musings are nothing but assumptions & conjecture.

There are heavy duty hedge funds, corporate trading accounts (CTA’s), Investment Funds (with varying degree’s of financial clout) & assorted institutional entities who actively & aggressively ply their trade in the Foreign Exchange markets every day.

Most of them are dual or multi-layered operators, FX being just part of a collective instrument based execution model.

You’re kidding yourself if you think the majority of these firms will be shouting from the rooftops on retail bulletin boards about their daily business activities. And unless you know exactly where to look or who to speak to, you won’t have a clue who they are or what they’re up to either.

They’ll be one or two individuals who interact with these entities active around the popular boards, but you won’t get anything out of them unless they care to divulge it. You definitely won’t hustle information from them about their institutional activities, earning/wealth standing or any other private information.

As with most successful business participants, these folk prefer to remain under the radar. Sure, they’ll offer advice & assistance if they care to, but you’ll only get to know what they want you to know – no more!

Why the interest anyway?

Thanks. As i said, i wanted to be wrong in my assumptions.

The interest is because i needed to make sure if forex (which i have only been looking into for 2 weeks) isn't just some sort of scam where everyone thinks they can make money but in fact it's much harder than in other types of investing. I got this feeling mainly because of the astounding quantity of brokers all around the internet and their heavy marketing, making me think that the big winners in this all are the brokers while even the best traders wouldn't be able to make much money.


It was just an assumption, i'm an intuitive person so it was mostly based in pieces of information i got here and there.

[Andrewunknown]

The interest is because i needed to make sure if forex (which i have only been looking into for 2 weeks) isn't just some sort of scam where everyone thinks they can make money but in fact it's much harder than in other types of investing. I got this feeling mainly because of the astounding quantity of brokers all around the internet and their heavy marketing, making me think that the big winners in this all are the brokers while even the best traders wouldn't be able to make much money.


It was just an assumption, i'm an intuitive person so it was mostly based in pieces of information i got here and there.

Often, "the big winners in this all" are the brokers - there aren't any ready statistics for the rate at which retail traders fail, but it is almost certainly the majority. That doesn't mean there cannot be and are not highly successful traders, just as there are in other financial markets, where many who try likewise fail. Even though retail forex accounts for only a small proportion of daily turnover in the (FX) market, it is a nascent, burgeoning industry in which brokers are fiercely competitive and do nearly all advertising online.

Under what circumstances would "everyone think they can make money but in fact it's much harder than in other types of investing"?

How would this happen? Some kind of propaganda campaign? What would make it "much harder"? What "types of 'investing'" are you using as a basis of comparison?

Anyone one of us here can claim they make $1M+ each year trading forex exclusively. Doubtful anyone would believe us, but that wouldn't make the statement false; and there would be no proving it were true. As Tymen put it, broadcasting profits/earnings/wealth resulting from the market (George Soros excepted) is almost always an exercise in bravado or hubris: there is no benefit except to elevate one's pride; but again, probably no one would believe the claims anyway. Rest assured, however, just as Tess said there are people (a few of whom may or may not post to this forum) who, on their own or as part of a fund/capital management co., etc. do make very tidy sums of money trading forex (whether exclusively or along with other instruments).

If you want authentic accounts of individuals trading forex (and other markets) successfully, check out Schwager's New Market Wizards and Lien/Schlossberg's Millionaire Traders.

[tonymand]

Thanks. As i said, i wanted to be wrong in my assumptions.

The interest is because i needed to make sure if forex (which i have only been looking into for 2 weeks) isn't just some sort of scam where everyone thinks they can make money but in fact it's much harder than in other types of investing. I got this feeling mainly because of the astounding quantity of brokers all around the internet and their heavy marketing, making me think that the big winners in this all are the brokers while even the best traders wouldn't be able to make much money.


It was just an assumption, i'm an intuitive person so it was mostly based in pieces of information i got here and there.

I think it is understandable that someone new would want to ascertain that this undertaking can be profitable. With that in mind you only have to meet one person in the real or virtual world that is successful at it to have answered your own question. One successful retail trader is all it takes! This doesnt mean you can do it only that it can be done. The rest is up to you