Kathy Lien, one of the biggest Forex traders out there will be appearing at the MoneyShow Las Vegas November 14-17, 2012. See our interview with her below and learn about the interesting life of a Forex trader.
DF: How did you first become interested in currency trading?
KL: It was my first job out of college! When you join a bank, you are first put on rotations through different trading groups to see what fits. One of my first rotations was on the FX interbank market making desk and I've never left the Forex market since then.
DF: What sessions are your favorite to trade in?
KL: Early North America – my favorite time to trade is between 7am ET – 12pm ET. While this certainly has something to do with the fact that I live in the East Coast Time Zone
DF: What are your favorite currency pairs?
KL: EUR/USD and AUD/USD
DF: What strategies do you find most effective for Forex trading?
KL: For short term trading, I like momentum. For longer term trading, I am always looking for a combination fundamentals, technical and sentiment.
DF: How did you first meet your partner, Boris Schlossberg, and how did you develop the idea to branch out on your own?
KL: I met Boris while working at FXCM. We actually started to provide trading signals a year or two into working with each other. In terms of branching out, we just felt that it was the right time to take our career to the next level by moving into Managed Forex Accounts and Education.
DF: Describe how it felt to leave the stability of your position at GFT Forex to start your own company.
KL: Exciting and scary at the same time! Anyone who has ever started their own business knows that the challenges that come with it. The workday never ends but we have faith in our products, want to provide a good service to our clients and know that our commitment will pay off.
DF: Why are you using FXCM as your trading platform for your managed accounts – and what benefits do you find this brokerage to offer?
KL: Having previously worked at FXCM, we have a strong relationship with management and feel that it will be mutually beneficial to work together.
DF: Do you use FXCM also for your own personal trading? If not, what platform do you use?
KL: We have traded a number of platforms in the past and will be using FXCM primarily from here on forward.
DF: Explain how what clients can expect from your service and a bit about how it works.
KL: There are 3 core product that's we now offer. For self directed traders, we offer trading signals and education. Every week our subscribers get day trades, news trades and positional trades. Every day we hold a different educational webinar and share our Top 5 Hot Ideas. For traders who want to participate in the FX market but don't want to be as involved, we offer Managed Forex Accounts.
DF: What is your performance thus far (and if possible, what do you expect it to be moving forward)?
KL: This is the first time we are managing money but our signals have performed well through the years. We have been doing this since 2007. We have taken a portfolio approach to our trading, which we believe will dampen volatility.
DF: How many times have you attended MoneyShow events? What is your favorite part of the event?
KL: Wow, I lost count! At least 10-15 times. My favorite is always interacting with traders. I love hearing everyone's experiences and sharing my own.
DF: Both trading Forex individually and managing other people's money is quite a stressful profession that comes with huge responsibility. How do you unwind and reduce your stress?
KL: A nice dinner and a glass of red wine.
DF: Any recommendations for new Forex traders? For longtime traders looking to refresh their perspective of the market?
KL: I think it is important to recognize that the market environment changes and adapt to those changes. Some years, trends are strong and generous and other years, currencies are trapped in tight ranges. In strong trending environments, take profits can be wider and a bit more fluid but in range bound environments, targets need to be tight.
DF: Any final ideas or advice that you'd like to share?
KL: Use fundamentals to determine the trade and technical to identify your entry and exits. Good luck trading.