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Quote:

But Mohammed Islam, from Queens, New York, has already made an estimated $72million - from trading stocks on his lunch breaks at school, according to New York magazine's Monday issue.

The 17-year-old, who started dabbling in penny stocks at the tender age of nine, spends most of his breaks at Stuyvesant High School trading oil and gold futures, and small to mid-cap equities.

Outside of school, he often takes his friends out to dine at Morimoto on 10th Avenue, where they feast on $400 caviar, expensive dishes and freshly-squeezed apple juice.

During an interview for the magazine;s 10th annual 'Reasons to Love New York issue', Mohammed refused to disclose his exact net worth, but he admitted it was in 'the high eight figures'.

The successful teenager revealed he had used his incredible wealth to purchase a BMW - which he does not yet have a license to drive - and rent a Manhattan apartment.

However, his parents, who are immigrants from the Bengal region of South Asia, will not yet allow him to move out of their family home in Queens, according to the New York Post.

Mohammed has also taken to social media to show off his well-funded, lavish lifestyle - regularly posting videos of him partying, playing poker and dancing with numerous women on Instagram.

His hard-earned cash has certainly been beneficial to his parents. 'My dad doesn't work now and I tend to help out with things, and futures gives me that incentive,' said the student.

But despite its advantages, Mr and Mrs Islam are not overly keen on their son's interest in trading.

'My dad doesn't like [finance] that much,' Mohammed, who has written the phrase, 'More money, less problems', on his Instagram profile, said in an ISSUU interview.

'He says he is ok with me trading, but my mom is skeptical about the market. But they see it as, if I am good at it, then why not?'

A year after he started experimenting with penny stocks, Mohammed was introduced to further financial markets by his cousin. He has since developed a 'life-long passion' for trading.

'What makes the world go round? Money,' he said. 'If money is not flowing, if businesses don’t keep going, there’s no innovation, no products, no investments, no growth, no jobs.'

On his LinkedIn profile, the student said he rose to success while trading stocks during his lunch breaks because he 'followed the market, hunted for opportunities and used everything from fundamental analysis to technical analysis and price action to speculate in the markets'.

After having high returns in penny stocks, he moved on to small-mid cap equities, then derivatives, before feeling out the futures market and specializing in oil and gold, he said.

He added he has now developed 'a passion for understanding the markets and a passion for making money', and trades 'mainly based on volatility and volume'.

During his interview with New York magazine's, Mohammed revealed his biggest inspiration in the finance world has been Paul Tudor Jones.

Jones, 60, the billionaire founder of Tudor Investment Corporation, a private asset management firm and hedge fund, ranks as the 108th-richest American, according to Forbes.

Mohammed said that while he had been 'paralyzed' by his losses when he first started trading, he quickly learned from Connecticut-based Jones's ability to get back into the game again and again.

'I had been paralyzed by my loss,' he said. 'But [Jones] was able to go back to it, even after losing thousands of dollars over and over.'

Speaking to Business Insider, he added: 'Jones’s personality and technique are what make him so successful and I aspire to become even one per cent of the man he is.

'He went through obstacles, yet still came out on top'

And despite his massive fortune, Mohammed has no plans to give up trading just yet.

The teenager said he and his trader friends hope to start a hedge fund in June - when he is old enough to get his broker-dealer license - and intend to make a billion dollars by next year.

This, of course, will all be done while attending college.

'It’s not just about the money,' said Mohammed, whose ultimate goal is to pave a path in the financial industry that will enable him to become a reputable hedge fund manager.

'We want to create a brotherhood. Like, all of us who are connected, who are in something together, who have influence.'

[Bacchus]

(12-15-2014 01:30 AM)dads Wrote:  

link

Quote:

The successful teenager revealed he had used his incredible wealth to purchase a BMW - which he does not yet have a license to drive - and rent a Manhattan apartment.

However, his parents, who are immigrants from the Bengal region of South Asia, will not yet allow him to move out of their family home in Queens, according to the New York Post.

Mohammed has also taken to social media to show off his well-funded, lavish lifestyle - regularly posting videos of him partying, playing poker and dancing with numerous women on Instagram.

[Simeon_Strangelight]

I hope they researched it a bit better than with some other articles.

http://www.businessinsider.com/20-under-...ese-days-4

Business Insider did a better take-down of the story than the Dailymail. It is possible, if he is really highly analytic, very intelligent and matured early. He started trading at age 9 and has already been doing tutoring jobs back then.

Quote:

Investing Style: My main markets now are Crude Oil futures and Gold futures and I trade small to mid-cap equities when the futures don’t present a good trade. I trade mainly based on volatility and volume. My strategy revolves around price-action trading and some macro.

Yes - sounds plausible. Dailymail did a reference to the penny stocks he traded while being 9. Of course he left that crap and he also lost his money then.

Good for him. He actually looks like some of the guys who have this cool, very controlled mindset necessary for good trading success. But his plans of creating a brotherhood of trading is illusory. Unless he is surrounded by similar success-stories all around it will be a one man show.

Also his goal is to reach one billion by next year. We will see - that would be one stellar performance.

[redbeard]

Now, reread the article but substitute all the money for game.

"At age 9 he started day gaming in his school cafeteria..."

"Mohammad was paralyzed by his losses when he first started rolling solo..."

"Despite being labeled an IRT he still came out on top."

[Pride male]

Boss!

[Handsome Creepy Eel]

Even shell games produce winners occasionally.

[Muk]

What value did he provide to earn that money?
Maybe I just don't understand it, but it seems like stocks is nothing more than gambling, and pilfering money from productive companies.
The companies produce income, stock investors swoop in, and take it through a form of gambling

[Simeon_Strangelight]

(12-15-2014 02:45 AM)Muk Wrote:  

What value did he provide to earn that money?
Maybe I just don't understand it, but it seems like stocks is nothing more than gambling, and pilfering money from productive companies.
The companies produce income, stock investors swoop in, and take it through a form of gambling

No way in hell did he make that kind of money trading stocks. He did it trading futures. If he read the right books it is possible that he got the basics of money management right. The rest is the correct mind-set and intellectual abilities.

Trading stocks is only possible either via insider knowledge or by spreading your investments far and wide and you need much more money than an average 10 year old can come by. Also the risk distribution would blast your potential earnings and he would not be able to make 72 mio. $ so fast. He admits that he trades high volatility futures - oil and gold - part of it likely risky as he possibly trades around numbers, but can be done.

[speakeasy]

The article doesn't say what kind of money he started off with or whether his family is rich. I suspect he already had significant cash to play with from the get go. I'm skeptical whether this a true rags to riches story.

What's funny is he's reminding me of that other rich Indian kid troll that posts all his bling on Instagram. He's doing the same thing.

[Simeon_Strangelight]

(12-15-2014 03:07 AM)speakeasy Wrote:  

The article doesn't say what kind of money he started off with or whether his family is rich. I suspect he already had significant cash to play with from the get go. I'm skeptical whether this a true rags to riches story.

What's funny is he's reminding me of that other rich Indian kid troll that posts all his bling on Instagram. He's doing the same thing.

He looks similar, though what he says sounds about right and he has read the right books.

He goes to an elite high school that is meritocracy based - tuition free also. As far as Queens is concerned - there is Queens and there is Forest Hills Gardens:



We certainly do not know whether he was given 5 mio. $ to play with at age 14 after he made some money. On the other hand trading is one of the venues where it's actually possible to do it if you have the rind mental frame, have studied the right books and have access to the correct instruments.

[Suits]

[lowside]

If true, much respect to this kid. Seriously, I love stories like these.

However, last time I read it was $300.000, still a nice amount but more plausible. Maybe this was a different kid.

I remain sceptical.

[Samseau]

My bullshit meter is going off for this story. If we can be skeptical about false rapes then we can be skeptical about a guy who trades penny stocks at the age of 9 and somehow becomes a multi-millionaire by 16. I'm wondering if the Daily Mail was duped or purposely reporting a false story? Regardless it doesn't make sense.

Let's pick apart the story -

1. 72 Million? Where is this number coming from? No verification.

Quote:

During an interview for New York magazine, Mohammed refused to disclose his exact net worth, but he admitted it was in 'the high eight figures'. Above, Stuyvesant High School, where he traded stocks

2. A high school kid pounding alcohol in expensive nightclubs with his high school friends? How the hell do they not get arrested in a state where the drinking age is 21? I understand everyone breaks these laws, but to advertise it openly? And a dude coming from an Islamic house too?



A full beard at age 17? (He's on the left)



Pretty sure if a nightclub hosted a party of high school students and let everyone drink alcohol they'd be shut down. Posting the pics on instagram, so flagrantly in violation of the laws? Huge bullshit.

3. Read up on the case of Alex Hope.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-...cheme.html

Quote:

A self-proclaimed financial whizz-kid - who once spent £200,000 on a single bar bill - appeared in court today accused of running an unauthorised investment scheme.

Foreign currency trader Alex Hope, 24, of Docklands, east London, hit the headlines in March 2012 when he reportedly bought Britain’s most expensive round of drinks at a nightclub in Liverpool.

But he was arrested at his flat during a raid by City of London Police in April this year on suspicion of financial services offences and fraud.

He was joined in the dock by Raj Vanbadlo, 55, who is charged with involvement in the investment scheme and of withdrawing £95,000 in alleged criminal proceeds.

Hope, a former Wembley stadium catering manager, reinvented himself as a day-trading currency markets expert and spent £125,000 on a giant bottle of champagne as part of his huge bar tab.

Almost the same story - young kid pops up in the news, on Daily Mail no less, claiming to have made millions. People are intrigued, google his name and find a website where they can invest in his services. Then they took the money and tried to run, get caught, and discover an older man who was the puppeteer using the young kid as a frontman the entire time.

Obviously using a young man to claims to be a whiz kid will attract a lot more attention than being an older guy who claims to have expertise.

What's to say this "Mohammed Islam" story is not the exact same thing? No way a kid trades penny stocks into millions, only a sucker would believe that.

[Cattle Rustler]

Not to mention, how can he buy a home and a BMW by himself?

Lets say his parents signed for him, but if they don't even let him drive the car nor move out, it makes it highly improbable.

[Simeon_Strangelight]

(12-15-2014 05:04 AM)Samseau Wrote:  

...
What's to say this "Mohammed Islam" story is not the exact same thing? No way a kid trades penny stocks into millions, only a sucker would believe that.

You are right to doubt the story. Hopefully Business Insider did a better background check on him - quite easy to do really if he is forthcoming with his financial info.

And as far as the penny stock angle goes - he said that he did that in the beginning, but lost his money - of course. Dailymail being the usual idiots wrote that he traded stocks, which is of course wrong since he trades commodity futures. You can make that kind of money, but it becomes more difficult the higher you go - Gold futures are not really very liquid and neither are oil that much. He would have better chances at trading 50 mio. $ in currency or some index futures.

But alas - it all depends on his risk profile.

What makes the story less believable is frankly his lifestyle and his complete openness. We will see whether the story is true.

@Cattlerustler - he is renting a home - don't know if you can do that as a 17 year old - maybe if you pay rent in advance they might let you do that. Also his parents might have had to sign.

[Parlay44]

Stupid question but since he's under 18 isn't all his income tax free

[Saweeep]

(12-15-2014 07:14 AM)Parlay44 Wrote:  

Stupid question but since he's under 18 isn't all his income tax free

Dunno about the US but taxable income is taxable income here.

Otherwise you'd have company owners paying their salaries to their kids etc to avoid taxes I'd have thought.

[Simeon_Strangelight]

(12-15-2014 07:25 AM)CrashBangWallop Wrote:  

(12-15-2014 07:14 AM)Parlay44 Wrote:  

Stupid question but since he's under 18 isn't all his income tax free

Dunno about the US but taxable income is taxable income here.

Otherwise you'd have company owners paying their salaries to their kids etc to avoid taxes I'd have thought.

Income for minors is income tax-exempt only to a small amount - usually that covers a part-time job on weekends/mornings or during the holidays. They have those laws in place almost everywhere in the West. Otherwise you would have millions of business owners and freelancers signing over their income to their children.

[Saweeep]

(12-15-2014 07:40 AM)Zelcorpion Wrote:  

(12-15-2014 07:25 AM)CrashBangWallop Wrote:  

(12-15-2014 07:14 AM)Parlay44 Wrote:  

Stupid question but since he's under 18 isn't all his income tax free

Dunno about the US but taxable income is taxable income here.

Otherwise you'd have company owners paying their salaries to their kids etc to avoid taxes I'd have thought.

Income for minors is income tax-exempt only to a small amount - usually that covers a part-time job on weekends/mornings or during the holidays. They have those laws in place almost everywhere in the West. Otherwise you would have millions of business owners and freelancers signing over their income to their children.

When I was a kid my pocket money was paid direct from one of my parents' companies. I think it was £400pcm the total non-taxable allowance back then (1990s).

[bojangles]

The only part of that story that does seem reliable is his parents not letting him leave home.

[Simeon_Strangelight]

Oh - and by the way - if he really made 70+ mio. $ starting from something like 5000$ or even 30.000$, then he could already open a Hedge Fund. While usually it is better to do it via a special program that lets you register your trades, he could just as well provide them with all the data and get started by age 18.

What could derail it would be:

1. The story is fake
2. He made money via some stupid ass trades that would have gotten any trader fired since they either result in spectacular wins or most often in spectacular losses. Even if you succeed everyone looking through them would know that he was just lucky and not skilled.
3. He started out with 50 mio. $ or 100 mio. $. Starting out with 10 mio. $ would be good, but would depend on the risk profile used.

Another point is also the question of who set up his margin account to trade futures, since futures trading can incur almost unlimited losses. Someone had to sign the account in his name - now that person is either very stupid, very very rich (and careless about losing 10 mio. $ on one day) or he knows a lot about trading and sees that the kid is indeed a whizkid and he trusts him. There are some old-time traders who started out using their uncle's accounts or even let the uncle do the trades back when their were some floor trading going on.

Another option is that someone is using the boy as a strawman for some insider trades. Since he trades commodities, those insiders would have to be high high up for example on the OPEC board. But that would be stupid to let him run around living so high on the hog.

[MrXY]

He and #itslavishbitch need to get together and party.

[Lemmo]

This story is an obvious fake unless he was given 10s of millions to invest. Or are we to believe he started with a few thousand and was consistently getting 1000%+ rates of return across a variety of asset classes from the age of 9?

[Saweeep]

We just don't have enough info to know really.

As suits said, he could just be a once in a generation black swan or he could be a fake...we have no real way of determining which.

This kind of activity is very, very tough though; a guy I know was an Oxford maths graduate, played online poker professionally for 3 years earning $200,000 tax free per year. He decided he wanted to be a day-trader and in the first few months made a lot of money. He then convinced himself he was a natural and has spent the last 10 years living in a shitty apartment trying to refine his "system" to rediscover his form of a decade ago. I suspect he's had a mental breakdown and wouldn't be surprised if I heard he'd killed himself at any moment.

[Jevioso]

There's a lot of grey spots in the story.

It's possible for him to be that good if the he got introduced to trading early and had a decent amount of capital, but we've not been given any context to know about his family or business life. I did look the guy up on google and found he'd done some work for TED, so I wouldn't be surprised if the 72 Mil number is legit, it's just a matter of how it was gotten.