Financial planner to financial trader
A financial planner already meets 74% of what the financial trader role asks for. The move turns on 4 required skills not yet in the profile.
29.3/ 100
1 How much of what a financial trader is expected to do is already part of a financial planner’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the financial trader role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A financial trader role treats 13 of its required skills as things a financial planner already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- advise on financial matters
- analyse market financial trends
- economics
- financial jurisdiction
- financial markets
- financial products
What stands in the way is 4 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 25 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A financial trader role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a financial planner background worth leading with.
- already held assess risks of clients' assets information skills
- already held advise on investment communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held offer financial services communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held operate financial instruments management skills
- already held develop investment portfolio management skills
- already held provide financial product information communication, collaboration and creativity
All 25 carried skills, including the 13 the financial trader role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 10 missing skills fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn analyse economic trends required
- optional, not held forecast economic trends optional
- optional, not held monitor stock market optional
- optional, not held perform stock valuation optional
- still to learn cryptocurrency required
- optional, not held fundamental analysis optional
- still to learn communicate with customers required
- optional, not held trade securities optional
- still to learn actuarial science required
- optional, not held make investment decisions optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a financial trader role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 actuarial science study this
- 02 cryptocurrency study this
- 03 analyse economic trends practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 25 skills that carry over
- already held advise on financial matters skill
- already held analyse market financial trends skill
- already held economics knowledge
- already held financial jurisdiction knowledge
- already held financial markets knowledge
- already held financial products knowledge
- already held handle financial transactions skill
- already held maintain records of financial transactions skill
- already held obtain financial information skill
- already held offer financial services skill
- already held operate financial instruments skill
- already held protect client interests skill
- already held provide financial product information skill
- already held advise on investment skill
- already held assess risks of clients' assets skill
- already held banking activities knowledge
- already held communicate with banking professionals skill
- already held create a financial plan skill
- already held develop investment portfolio skill
- already held investment analysis knowledge
- already held manage financial risk skill
- already held modern portfolio theory knowledge
- already held review investment portfolios skill
- already held securities knowledge
- already held stock market knowledge
6 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held fundamental analysis optional
- optional, not held forecast economic trends optional
- optional, not held make investment decisions optional
- optional, not held monitor stock market optional
- optional, not held perform stock valuation optional
- optional, not held trade securities optional
42 held skills the financial trader role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role accounting techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role advise on tax planning skill
- not needed by the target role analyse business plans skill
- not needed by the target role analyse financial performance of a company skill
- not needed by the target role analyse financial risk skill
- not needed by the target role analyse insurance needs skill
- not needed by the target role analyse loans skill
- not needed by the target role analyse the credit history of potential customers skill
- not needed by the target role apply technical communication skills skill
- not needed by the target role assess debtor's financial situation skill
- not needed by the target role assist in loan applications skill
- not needed by the target role assist in will writing skill
- not needed by the target role budget for financial needs skill
- not needed by the target role business loans knowledge
- not needed by the target role calculate employee benefits skill
- not needed by the target role collect financial data skill
- not needed by the target role consult credit score skill
- not needed by the target role create banking accounts skill
- not needed by the target role customer service knowledge
- not needed by the target role debt systems knowledge
- not needed by the target role disseminate information on tax legislation skill
- not needed by the target role financial forecasting knowledge
- not needed by the target role financial management knowledge
- not needed by the target role foreign valuta knowledge
- not needed by the target role guarantee customer satisfaction skill
- not needed by the target role identify customer's needs skill
- not needed by the target role inform on interest rates skill
- not needed by the target role interpret financial statements skill
- not needed by the target role maintain credit history of clients skill
- not needed by the target role manage pension funds skill
- not needed by the target role monitor loan portfolio skill
- not needed by the target role mortgage loans knowledge
- not needed by the target role prepare real estate contract skill
- not needed by the target role principles of insurance knowledge
- not needed by the target role provide support in financial calculation skill
- not needed by the target role real estate market knowledge
- not needed by the target role sell insurance skill
- not needed by the target role synthesise financial information skill
- not needed by the target role tax legislation knowledge
- not needed by the target role types of insurance knowledge
2 further entries not listed here
3 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn actuarial science required
- still to learn cryptocurrency required
- optional, not held fundamental analysis optional
Common questions about this move
Can a financial planner become a financial trader?
Yes, and it is an adjacent move. A financial planner already covers 74% of what a financial trader is expected to do: 25 skills carry over, 13 of which the financial trader role treats as required.
What skills does a financial planner need to become a financial trader?
4 required skills are missing, plus 6 optional ones. They fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is actuarial science.
How hard is the move from financial planner to financial trader?
Its learning distance is 29.3 out of 100, which is the adjacent band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.