Trading is a challenging endeavor and there’s considerable churn in the discipline. Successful traders, let alone profitable ones, are a rarity.
Those who succeed in it are often admired for their perseverance and strategies. Some of these successful traders have left a mark on the world.
In fact, many traders turn to their learnings and use their techniques. In this article, let us look at some of the best traders in the world through time who have built fortunes in the financial markets.
7 Best Traders of All Time
Here is a list of 7 most renowned traders of all time:
1. Jesse Livermore
Born in 1877 in Massachusetts, Jesse Livermore’s exposure to the stock market began when he started posting quotes for a stockbroker when he was 15.
From earning a huge fortune to being bankrupt twice, he was named “The Great Bear of Wall Street”.
By the age of 30, he had earned a million dollars in the stock market. He also authored a book How to Trade in Stocks in the year 1940. However, when the time of his third bankruptcy came, he committed suicide.
Read his story here: Made millions in a day, yet lost everything
2. George Soros
Renowned as the broker who broke the Bank of England in the year 1992 with his legendary bet against the British pound that earned him a profit of $1 billion within 24 hours.
He set up a Double Eagle hedge fund in 1969 that was later renamed Quantum Fund.
With the profit earned in these funds, he set up Soros Fund Management LLC in 1973. It is now a family office responsible for managing public and private equity. Soros’ estimated net worth amounted to $6.7 billion at the age of 92.
3. Paul Tudor Jones
A famous hedge fund trader, Paul Tudor Jones is known for his macro trades. Initially, he started his career as a clerk working for a commodity trader and later progressed to a trader and finally earned popularity in the year 1987 with the prediction of Black Monday.
He earned $100 million despite the Dow Jones Industrial Average crashing 22%. In 1980, he founded his hedge fund named Tudor Investment Corp. The present net worth of Paul Tudor Jones is estimated at $7.5 billion.
4. Richard Dennis
Renowned by the name “Prince of the Pit”, Richard Dennis is an extraordinary floor trader and commodities speculator. He started with $400 which boosted to $3,000 in 1970 and ultimately to $100,000 in 1973.
Dennis earned trading soybeans to secure his place as a millionaire. He was also one of the best day traders in the world.
That said, Dennis suffered major losses during the Black Monday stock market crash and the dot-com bubble burst. Additionally, Richard Dennis launched a “Turtle Traders Group” to teach people to trade who eventually earned huge profits.
5. John Paulson
One of the most popular hedge fund managers in the world began his career at BCG and eventually founded the management firm Paulson & Co. in 1994. His popularity came as a result of his success in the global financial crisis of 2007–2008 through his bet against the US housing market.
Paulson anticipated the subprime mortgage crisis and invested in credit default swaps that earned him a fortune of over $4 billion.
6. Steven Cohen
Another renowned name in the best trailers in the world is Steven Cohen who is famous as a hedge fund manager and owner of New York Mets of Major League Baseball.
He began his career at the company Gruntal & Co. in 1978 where he earned the company profits of $100,000 a day.
Cohen then founded his hedge fund called SAC Capital in 1992 which grew over the next 20 years after its commencement.
However, Cohen got implicated in an insider trading scandal where SAC Capital pled guilty. They paid $1.8 billion as a penalty which also led to its subsequent closure.
Cohen started another global asset management fund by the name Point72 Ventures which now owns assets valuing more than $28 billion.
7. Michael Burry
Micheal earned his name as one of the first traders who profited from the subprime mortgage crisis.
Initially started his career as a physician he later transitioned to a trader and opened his hedge fund by the name Scion Capital in 2000.
Burry earned through shorting overvalued tech stocks at the height of the internet bubble.
He later shifted his focus to real estate and predicted that the real estate bubble would collapse in 2007.
He earned a personal profit of $100 million and later shifted to personal investment. Finally, in 2013, Burry started Scion Asset Management LLC which is a private investment firm.
Conclusion
These are some of the best traders of all time who stand as an inspiration for all traders. A lot can be learned from their strategies and trading patterns.
That said, always remember that situations in the market can’t be replicated and you must build risk management and trading strategies that work for you.
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