Financial trader to securities trader
A financial trader already meets 80% of what the securities trader role asks for. The move turns on 2 required skills not yet in the profile.
22.7/ 100
1 How much of what a securities trader is expected to do is already part of a financial trader’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 securities trader role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A securities trader role treats 14 of its required skills as things a financial trader already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- actuarial science
- analyse economic trends
- analyse market financial trends
- communicate with customers
- economics
- financial jurisdiction
What stands in the way is 2 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 28 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A securities trader role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a financial trader background worth leading with.
- already held make investment decisions management skills
- already held advise on investment communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held offer financial services communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held trade securities communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held monitor stock market information skills
- already held perform stock valuation information skills
All 28 carried skills, including the 14 the securities trader role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 10 missing skills fall into 6 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 write work-related reports required
- still to learn perform financial market business required
- optional, not held analyse financial risk optional
- optional, not held examine credit ratings optional
- optional, not held interpret financial statements optional
- optional, not held trace financial transactions optional
- optional, not held accounting techniques optional
- optional, not held tax legislation optional
- optional, not held office software optional
- optional, not held statistics optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 2 entries a securities trader role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 28 skills that carry over
- already held actuarial science knowledge
- already held analyse economic trends skill
- already held analyse market financial trends skill
- already held communicate with customers skill
- already held economics knowledge
- already held financial jurisdiction knowledge
- already held financial markets knowledge
- already held forecast economic trends skill
- already held handle financial transactions skill
- already held modern portfolio theory knowledge
- already held monitor stock market skill
- already held offer financial services skill
- already held securities knowledge
- already held stock market knowledge
- already held advise on financial matters skill
- already held advise on investment skill
- already held banking activities knowledge
- already held create a financial plan skill
- already held develop investment portfolio skill
- already held financial products knowledge
- already held investment analysis knowledge
- already held maintain records of financial transactions skill
- already held make investment decisions skill
- already held obtain financial information skill
- already held perform stock valuation skill
- already held provide financial product information skill
- already held review investment portfolios skill
- already held trade securities skill
8 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held accounting techniques optional
- optional, not held analyse financial risk optional
- optional, not held examine credit ratings optional
- optional, not held interpret financial statements optional
- optional, not held office software optional
- optional, not held statistics optional
- optional, not held tax legislation optional
- optional, not held trace financial transactions optional
7 held skills the securities trader role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role assess risks of clients' assets skill
- not needed by the target role communicate with banking professionals skill
- not needed by the target role cryptocurrency knowledge
- not needed by the target role fundamental analysis knowledge
- not needed by the target role manage financial risk skill
- not needed by the target role operate financial instruments skill
- not needed by the target role protect client interests skill
4 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- optional, not held accounting techniques optional
- optional, not held office software optional
- optional, not held statistics optional
- optional, not held tax legislation optional
Common questions about this move
Can a financial trader become a securities trader?
Yes, and it is an adjacent move. A financial trader already covers 80% of what a securities trader is expected to do: 28 skills carry over, 14 of which the securities trader role treats as required.
What skills does a financial trader need to become a securities trader?
2 required skills are missing, plus 8 optional ones. They fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by communication, collaboration and creativity. The single most important is perform financial market business.
How hard is the move from financial trader to securities trader?
Its learning distance is 22.7 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.