The Physics of Trading

This is part of a series of posts by recipients of the 2021 Career Services Summer Funding Grant. We’ve asked funding recipients to reflect on their summer experiences and talk about the industries in which they spent their summer. You can read the entire series here.

This entry is by Marcello Oliveto, COL ’22

Entering my freshman year of college planning to study physics, I never expected to end up on a career path in the finance and tech industry. However, fast forward to my senior year, I am grateful to have been able to do summer work/research for an investment group start up named Gabanti Investment Group. I had never anticipated that my studies in Physics and technology would be applicable outside of the STEM realm. However, my background proved useful in my endeavors this past summer. Starting in the winter of 2020, I was asked to learn and apply a complex trading strategy to a paper trading account. After months of learning, fine-tuning, and further developing the strategy, I was able to turn a $22,000 profit in just a few months of paper trading. By the time the summer came around, my colleagues felt I was ready to assist in the main goals of the company; manage stock portfolios with values ranging from $10 to $500 thousand. In addition to managing portfolios, I was asked to further research ways to improve the current investment strategy to maximize profits with a conservative trading methodology.  Over the course of the spring and summer months, I worked tirelessly during the day to keep track of market trends and the several portfolios I helped manage. When nightfall came, I would then meet up with my colleagues to discuss the day’s events, trend changes, and plan for our portfolios moving forward. It was during these meetings that I would be able to learn a wealth of knowledge under an investor with over 25 years of experience. It was also during these meetings where I was able to bring forward and discuss my own thoughts and plans moving forward.

Of course, this whole experience would not be possible without the generous funding I received. With the money, I was able to cover some expenses that came with small earnings of a startup. It allowed me to confidently trade and test strategies with real money to further develop my instincts as a trader. I am forever grateful for the priceless lessons I learned over the summer. As a result of work this summer, I can now confidently say I am able to manage and grow portfolios at a sustainable, conservative rate. The wealth of knowledge I picked up from an experienced trader allowed me to understand the ins and outs of trading stocks, ETFs, stock derivatives, and overall market trends. With all this, I truly believe my career path as been greatly solidified.

By Career Services
Career Services