Stock broker to financial trader
A stock broker already meets 78% of what the financial trader role asks for. The move turns on 3 required skills not yet in the profile.
25.4/ 100
1 How much of what a financial trader is expected to do is already part of a stock broker’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 14 of its required skills as things a stock broker already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- actuarial science
- advise on financial matters
- analyse market financial trends
- communicate with customers
- economics
- financial jurisdiction
What stands in the way is 3 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 26 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 stock broker background worth leading with.
- already held fundamental analysis business, administration and law
- already held assess risks of clients' assets information skills
- already held operate financial instruments management skills
- already held trade securities communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held perform stock valuation information skills
- already held forecast economic trends information skills
All 26 carried skills, including the 14 the financial trader role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 9 missing skills fall into 4 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 cryptocurrency required
- optional, not held investment analysis optional
- still to learn offer financial services required
- optional, not held advise on investment optional
- still to learn analyse economic trends required
- optional, not held monitor stock market optional
- optional, not held create a financial plan optional
- optional, not held develop investment portfolio optional
- 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 cryptocurrency study this
- 02 offer financial services practise 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 26 skills that carry over
- already held actuarial science knowledge
- already held advise on financial matters 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 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 operate financial instruments skill
- already held protect client interests skill
- already held provide financial product information skill
- already held assess risks of clients' assets skill
- already held banking activities knowledge
- already held communicate with banking professionals skill
- already held forecast economic trends skill
- already held fundamental analysis knowledge
- already held manage financial risk skill
- already held modern portfolio theory knowledge
- already held perform stock valuation skill
- already held review investment portfolios skill
- already held securities knowledge
- already held stock market knowledge
- already held trade securities skill
6 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held advise on investment optional
- optional, not held investment analysis optional
- optional, not held create a financial plan optional
- optional, not held develop investment portfolio optional
- optional, not held make investment decisions optional
- optional, not held monitor stock market optional
12 held skills the financial trader role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role accounting knowledge
- not needed by the target role analyse financial risk skill
- not needed by the target role apply technical communication skills skill
- not needed by the target role asset management knowledge
- not needed by the target role build business relationships skill
- not needed by the target role create a financial report skill
- not needed by the target role examine credit ratings skill
- not needed by the target role holding company activities knowledge
- not needed by the target role provide support in financial calculation skill
- not needed by the target role statistics knowledge
- not needed by the target role tax legislation knowledge
- not needed by the target role trace financial transactions skill
2 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 cryptocurrency required
- optional, not held investment analysis optional
Common questions about this move
Can a stock broker become a financial trader?
Yes, and it is an adjacent move. A stock broker already covers 78% of what a financial trader is expected to do: 26 skills carry over, 14 of which the financial trader role treats as required.
What skills does a stock broker need to become a financial trader?
3 required skills are missing, plus 6 optional ones. They fall into 4 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by business, administration and law. The single most important is cryptocurrency.
How hard is the move from stock broker to financial trader?
Its learning distance is 25.4 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.