Episode 17: Benjamin Simon (ASIJ 2006)

Precious Metals Trader

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Benjamin explains to Nick his journey as a TCK, navigating through both French and American schools, and ultimately choosing to graduate through the American system after attending ASIJ and Shanghai American School.

The two discuss and reminisce how global the experience was attending an international school, as Nick pointed out Benjamins group of friends alone was a mini-EU with a student from Bulgaria, another from Sweden, an Italian, and Benjamin (French).

Benjamin shares with Nick stories of how his background of being a "TCK" (Third Culture Kid), had helped him throughout his career course, and has helped him work in the various multi-cultural teams he has served in for the various transnational corporations he has worked for. Benjamin also explains how the way he entered the banking industry and trading industry was not the standard way one would go from college to work, and instead, he was able to specifically leverage his background a multicultural TCK to help him get positions in banks, which eventually helped him land the work he pursues today.

Benjamin explains to Nick the life of a precious metals trader, and how the market has been affected by the recent outbreak of COVID-19. He provides Nick with pointers for beginner investors, and what to be careful about when it comes to investment for products such as gold, silver, and platinum. The two also touch upon the topic of bitcoin in the market, and the often drawn parallel of bitcoin and gold.

Nick asks Benjamin about whether the new platforms for trading has increased the level of day trading, and Benjamin agrees that it has, and shares an anecdote from his experience on a taxi in Shanghai that illustrates this point.

Benjamin Simon

Precious Metals Trader

Benjamin graduated HEC Montreal in 2010 with a Bachelor in Business Administration. He started his career at ANZ Bank, working as a front office assistant for the markets division. After a year, he managed to move to a front office role as a junior trader on the Precious Metals desk. He subsequently moved to their London office where he became responsible for their forwards business. He has now moved to the buy-side and is working for KOCH Supply and Trading as a prop precious metals trader.

To kick start his professional career Benjamin was able to leverage on the opportunities of growing up as a TCK, not only did it open his doors at the start of his career but it also enabled him to be flexible and be a natural fit within multicultural teams.

Benjamin has been living in London since 2012 and now enjoys discovering the UK as well as new European cities for holidays.