Stereotypes of Traders and Bankers
Yale finance professor Robert Shiller once said in a lecture:
"Investment bankers, compared particularly to traders, investment bankers like to cultivate an image of sober responsibility and good citizenship because they thrive on their reputation. So they--to be successful as an investment banker, you have to be so impressive and such high character that companies like Ford and GM will come to you to represent them in the sale of their securities. As a result, investment bankers tend to be well dressed; they tend to be patrician in their appearances and manner. In contrast, traders tend to have vulgar accents; they shout on the phone; they slam the phone down; they roll up their sleeves; they dribble food on their shirt. I may be putting them down too much."
Is this barbaric stereotype of traders true? Liar's Pokers definitely seems to depict traders this way. Lewis Ranieri used to display excessive gluttony and seemed like a fat bastard. Discuss.
What that quote is referring to is the fact that a trader success is not tied to his/her image. This allows a successful trader to generally do whatever s/he wishes (obviously restrained to certain limits). If he feels like being a slob and can still be successful, go at it. If he feels like being suited up and can still be successful, why not.
As long as a trader can generate profits, no one really cares what he does. That is one hell of a positive thing.
"barbaric"? LOL.
Shiller is a moron
I’ll admit, I’m rather enjoying waking up whenever the hell and going to the gym 2x a day. Just this week, I watched Transformers in the theater at 3 in the afternoon after lifting. Halfway through that exceptionally manly movie, I felt like a meathead trader I was so jacked up on testosterone. I almost picked a fight with the dude in front of me, but instead of absolutely destroying the 85 year old, handicapped Asian man, I went home and stood in front of my full-length mirror and watched myself rapidly change from my street clothes into my Banker clothes.
One second I was an innocuous American car, wearing shorts and a polo. The next second—BAM! I was transformed and growling back at myself in a $3k bespoke suit, 1000 feet tall, ready to shoot M&A lasers out of my elbows.
Source: LSO
The LSO journalist is a Brett Easton Ellis wannabe. Nothing more nothing less.
Admittedly I haven't read any of BEE's stuff, but know him to be a much more serious author than LSO – there's a lot going on in American Psycho the film and presumably more in the book – which is brilliant but light satire that doesn't go much deeper than psyche of young bankers.
This is all to say that I don't think LSO is ripping BEE off: LSO is just funny with BEE's stuff (if AP is any indication) being a lot heavier – ex in AP: everyone looking the same, the ~murders, etc.
Tired of this 80s shit. The entire 80s/Liars Poker/Phil Collins/American Psycho cadre of examples depicting "Wall Street" anthropology is an irrelevant and antiquated concept. More importantly it is fucking exhaustingly tiring to hear of. It's 2011.
You want to know how successful traders on the street really behave? The person most high powered sell-side market makers (to the layman "Wall Street" Traders) emulate is the Hedge Fund Manager -- they copy parlance, clothing, attitude/behavior, and most importantly, lifestyle. There is continuous interaction between market makers and HF traders/PM, and there's so many client events where these traders are literally meeting with individuals who are often worth 50-100mm.
You really think you can just meet up for drinks at Whiskey Park with a top HF PM with fucking mustard drivel on your wso/">shirt? Cmon dude.
Totally outdated bullshit, most traders are nerdy and the exceptions are the guys on vanilla/cash desks who may or may not embody some of these stereotypes. If you long for a liars poker feel stay on the equities floor.
Yeah most traders now are much nerdier and straight laced. Think about it, which one do you think would make more money, nerds analyzing highly technical models, or someone who's low-class, vulgar, unkept, and "goes with their gut"?
"Is this barbaric stereotype of traders true? Liar's Pokers definitely seems to depict traders this way. Lewis Ranieri used to display excessive gluttony and seemed like a fat bastard. Discuss."
Is this an exam question???
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