The most well-known approach to becoming an independent trader is to engage in proprietary trading by opening an account with an online broker to be able to manage your capital directly from an online trading platform.

Although particularly risky, this activity attracts many individuals looking for “financial freedom”. However, it is indeed a profession in its own right requiring many hours of work.

A few individuals initially looking for additional income may eventually begin to manage their private capital full time, but these are generally former trading professionals who have spent several years in the trading room and now wish to capitalize on their skills without having to undergo the constraints imposed by an employer.

Independent proprietary traders speculate on price variations of financial products in order to make capital gains that they can recover at the end of the month to pay themselves remuneration. From one month to the next, their salaries can therefore vary greatly.

Within this community, several trading strategies are generally adopted. These can be differentiated according to the time horizon of the trades (scalping, day trading, or swing trading), but also according to the way in which the trader seeks to profit from the financial markets (directional strategy, optional strategy, carry trade, etc.).