Foreign exchange trader to securities broker
A foreign exchange trader already meets 65% of what the securities broker role asks for. The move turns on 6 required skills not yet in the profile.
37.3/ 100
1 How much of what a securities broker is expected to do is already part of a foreign exchange 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 broker role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A securities broker role treats 14 of its required skills as things a foreign exchange trader already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- actuarial science
- advise on financial matters
- analyse financial risk
- analyse market financial trends
- economics
- financial jurisdiction
What stands in the way is 6 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 20 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A securities broker role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a foreign exchange trader background worth leading with.
- already held trade securities communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held operate financial instruments management skills
- already held perform stock valuation information skills
- already held forecast economic trends information skills
- already held stock market business, administration and law
- already held maintain records of financial transactions information skills
All 20 carried skills, including the 14 the securities broker role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 14 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 apply technical communication skills required
- still to learn protect client interests required
- still to learn review investment portfolios required
- optional, not held build business relationships optional
- optional, not held communicate with banking professionals optional
- optional, not held communicate with customers optional
- optional, not held provide financial product information optional
- still to learn assess risks of clients' assets required
- still to learn obtain financial information required
- optional, not held provide support in financial calculation optional
- still to learn create a financial plan required
- optional, not held modern portfolio theory optional
- optional, not held tax legislation optional
- optional, not held electronic communication optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a securities broker role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 apply technical communication skills practise this
- 02 assess risks of clients' assets practise this
- 03 create a financial plan 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 20 skills that carry over
- already held actuarial science knowledge
- already held advise on financial matters skill
- already held analyse financial risk 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 forecast economic trends skill
- already held handle financial transactions skill
- already held maintain records of financial transactions skill
- already held securities knowledge
- already held stock market knowledge
- already held trade securities skill
- already held accounting knowledge
- already held banking activities knowledge
- already held operate financial instruments skill
- already held perform stock valuation skill
- already held statistics knowledge
- already held trace financial transactions skill
8 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held build business relationships optional
- optional, not held communicate with banking professionals optional
- optional, not held communicate with customers optional
- optional, not held electronic communication optional
- optional, not held modern portfolio theory optional
- optional, not held provide financial product information optional
- optional, not held provide support in financial calculation optional
- optional, not held tax legislation optional
9 held skills the securities broker role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role analyse economic trends skill
- not needed by the target role commercial law knowledge
- not needed by the target role foreign valuta knowledge
- not needed by the target role international commercial transactions rules knowledge
- not needed by the target role international trade knowledge
- not needed by the target role manage financial risk skill
- not needed by the target role monitor stock market skill
- not needed by the target role perform financial risk management in international trade skill
- not needed by the target role trade foreign currencies skill
3 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 electronic communication optional
- optional, not held modern portfolio theory optional
- optional, not held tax legislation optional
Other moves recorded from foreign exchange trader
Common questions about this move
Can a foreign exchange trader become a securities broker?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A foreign exchange trader already covers 65% of what a securities broker is expected to do: 20 skills carry over, 14 of which the securities broker role treats as required.
What skills does a foreign exchange trader need to become a securities broker?
6 required skills are missing, plus 8 optional ones. They fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by communication, collaboration and creativity. The single most important is apply technical communication skills.
How hard is the move from foreign exchange trader to securities broker?
Its learning distance is 37.3 out of 100, which is the moderate 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.