"Bear Stearns to Algebra I Means Lost Dollars in Trickle-Down" Trader forced to become math teacher

[Lucky Luciano]

Feel free to skip this rant and go to the article below!

I know the feeling - I was a trader too, but pretty junior...and my weekly comp (including bonus) has gone from X in my first year of work to 0.06 * X - in unemployment checks. It is super brutal. I have been out for seven months and have found no bid from any other trading shops. I found one tiny prop shop that wants to do high frequency options trading - I had the a former boss I worked with who is very credible and worked with one of the guys that interviewed me speak highly of me, I had two former big shots who ran the equity derivatives quant desk at a large bulge bracket bank speak on my behalf and what they put me through to even get the job there and two other big guns speak well for me - they say that they had 300 resumes from all over and many of them had experience in high frequency options trading - I did not have that and my math PhD and C++ background counted for nada. Yesterday, I told an exboss (not the one that canned me after he lost $100MM, but the one who spoke highly about me and made $250MM for his bank last year) say, "I hate to see you out of work. Do you want to work with me as an intern so I can test some of your strategies before hiring you? I can pay at the annualized rate of 0.20 * X and since it is contract work there would be no bonus" Fucking pisses me off, but I may be forced to take him up on it. If my strategy works - and it should - then perhaps he will pay me appropriately. In the meantime I will meet a lot of people there and be in the loop - perhaps I can get some of their contacts that can be useful - or my exboss might actually treat me right in the end for which I will be eternally grateful!

:rant:

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601109&sid=aQJzd0DkdWuQ&refer=home


May 22 (Bloomberg) -- After former Bear Stearns Cos. trader Guy Irace lost his job on the bond desk a year ago, he moved back to Long Island to teach high school math and dropped 40 pounds. Jack Yang’s deli in Manhattan cut three employees.

Cavonberry’s, Yang’s 46th Street shop near the headquarters of the New York firm taken over by JPMorgan Chase & Co., once bustled with finance workers jostling to buy a barbeque chicken chopped salad and bottled water for $12. “They used to be turning them away at the door,” Irace said.

Last week, slow enough that one cashier instead of the usual two operated the register at midday, Yang tallied up the ripple effect of the financial slump that cost Bear Stearns its independence: He negotiated a $4,000 monthly decrease in rent with Sierra Realty Corp., to $17,000, and is spending 35 percent less a week with Fischer Foods of New York Inc. for such things as artichokes and ham.

“Since January, everything’s dead,” said Yang, 52.

The biggest Wall Street crisis since the Great Depression isn’t just a setback for New York or bankers. The finance industry’s contraction may wipe out $185 billion in wages and profits, or $600 for every man, woman and child in the U.S., according to Thomas Philippon, a finance professor at New York University’s Stern School of Business. The trail of reduced income affects car mechanics, waiters, sports teams, hair stylists, jewelers, housecleaners and watch repair shops.

Largest Absolute Drop

“We’re seeing lots of lives derailed,” said Simon Johnson, professor of entrepreneurship at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Irace, who worked at Bear Stearns for 19 years and is now a teacher in Uniondale, New York, is one of 255,441 people who’ve lost U.S. finance jobs since January 2008, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Thousands more have seen cutbacks in pay.

In New York City alone, bonuses fell to $18.4 billion last year from $32.9 billion in 2007, the largest absolute drop ever, according to the state comptroller’s office.

--SNIP--

[zipplewrath]

1. I'm just cynical enough

I see a line like this:

"Irace, who worked at Bear Stearns for 19 years and is now a teacher in Uniondale, New York, is one of 255,441 people who’ve lost U.S. finance jobs since January 2008, according to data compiled by Bloomberg."

and the first thing I think is, "and he probably complained about teachers unions and 'overpaid' teachers for those 19 years."

God I'm cynical.

[Lucky Luciano]

2. I doubt it - something like that is far far far far from his mind

when trading. Traders do not necessarily lean republican. Most don't care about or discuss politics (who needs to make enemies with business partners) and primarily care about just making money. They do tend to be socially liberal and focused like a laser on their bonus since it is the vast majority of what they get paid.