The TradersExpo allows new and experienced traders to connect in a positive environment. The money show event offers retail traders a chance to speak and learn from industry leaders. Names include Tom Sosnoff of Tastytrade, Amelia Bourdeau of Market Compass, and Michael Bellafiore of SMB Capital.
(A look back at team member Creed’s visit to the 2019 TradersExpo located in New York City).
A few of the things you can expect when attending the expo are several companies offering you tools and techniques. The exhibition is a solid balance between education and tools. A short walk to the floor will immerse you in the full traders’ experience.
These companies offer you the retail equivalent of proprietary equipment to give you a market edge. If you are more of a patterns-based trader, then there are tools for that. Say you are more of a numbers person, then there are spreadsheet analytical tools for that. If you need it, then more than likely it will be represented here in the exhibit hall.
Some of the companies represented are TC2000, LikeFolio, and IG. Over 30 different companies were offering different solutions for every trader. Coming to the expo will expose you to all of these tools and companies to build relationships beyond just the keyboard and finally gain that edge you have been desiring.
The TradersExpo Classes
The primary purpose of The TradersExpo is education. Attending the three-day-long event will yield you more information than you could have ever hoped for. Even an experienced trader like myself can always learn something new, and the workshops you can attend open you up to that fact.
Industry leaders teach the classes with several years of experience. Backgrounds range from years in the trading pits to individuals who have coded and built indicators, alert systems, and techniques used across the exchanges. So what was my experience with the classes?
The TradersExpo – Day 1
The early morning session in Sutton Hall was packed with a variety of people. Some are new to trading, some are very seasoned. A few pilot conversations in the main entrance, then a short walk to the front section to see what was in store.
The first speaker of the morning was Ashok Yarlagadda of Delphian. He opened some insight to a lot of new traders on how, as a retail trader, we are fighting an uphill battle against industry HFT algos and prop firms that have access way beyond what a typical retail trader would have.
His company offers a solution for traders to be able to filter out a lot of the noise and use a simple user interface to open and close positions.
Their system is presented in a way that would be a great asset to the trader who is long-term biased, one who can not or does not wish to manage the position actively every day.
Overall, the morning was filled with several similar things all working towards the same goal. To give traders a leg up over the typical trader who slacks to do their research and will ultimately fail due to such actions.
After the morning session, I connected with some of the Bullish Bears members, and we had lunch at the hotel.
Planning out the next day’s classes and figuring out which keynotes we wanted to attend. After a few hours of talking and a nice meal, we head back to the Sutton Center for the final essential notes.
The Traders Expo – John Bollinger and Tom Sosnoff
The room is packed, and we find a few seats in the middle section next to a prompter. We are catching Jon Najarian finishing up and John Bollinger coming on stage. We have full stomachs and attentive ears.
John Bollinger comes on stage and begins to teach us about an unexpected opportunity. He was telling a story about his first experiences with Bitcoin. Being a larger firm, they eventually need to purchase a dedicated server rack, and upon his first visit to see the hardware, he was also introduced to a bitcoin mining rack.
One thing led to another, and John became interested in using his custom Bollinger Band setup to trade Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies in general.
After a successful setup, it was all but set in stone that the proper use of Bollinger Bands can be useful when trading cryptocurrencies.
To close out the day and the keynotes, Tom Sosnoff, founder and Co-CEO of TastyTrade, was our final speaker. Tom is a wonderful person to talk with in more aspects than just that of trading. The evening’s keynote is titled “ Troublemakers and Small-Time Crooks.”
Tom has a passion for empowering the small-time trader to be on a level playing field, both resource-wise and in the growth of knowledge, much like we do here at the Bullish Bears.
During his talk, he gives his view on how larger companies and news outlets take advantage of the individual trader. Some with excessive fees, others with delayed order fills, and misleading titles
The Traders Expo – Day 1 Conclusion
Day one was a great warm-up to the days to come—plenty of knowledge to be gained and shared. The expo is a wealth of opportunities for everyone involved.
My main takeaways from day one are that even the newest trader is given a fair opportunity to learn at this event.
You are evenly exposed to both tools and educators to begin building yourself as a genuine trader. Passive or active, you can learn from the full gambit.
