Meet the Nutmegger Q&A with Jason the trader

Q: How long have you been at Nutmeg?
A: 11 months

Q: What made you join?
A: I was interested in joining a fintech company as it’s an industry that’s getting a lot of attention right now. Nutmeg felt to me like an industry leader so it seemed a good place to start.

The job itself was also very tempting. I’ve been in the industry for 11 years and you can start to just feel like a number in the bigger corporate banks, but that’s not the case here. I’m trusted with more responsibility than anywhere I’ve worked before and that’s a good feeling.

Q: Can you explain your job in one sentence?
A: Attention to detail. It’s more of a phrase than a sentence, but you have to be meticulous when you’re working as a trader as the system could fall down if there are any exceptions.

Q: What would you say to a young person hoping to become a trader?
A: You have to work hard and understand the financial market as a whole. I wouldn’t recommend specialising in any one area while you’re still young as it can narrow down career possibilities. It’s also good to have a broad market knowledge because it will inform so many of your decisions when trading.

Q: What piece of advice would you give to a new investor who wasn’t too familiar with the industry?
A: Keep up to date with Nutmegonomics – I’m not just saying that to promote the company – I genuinely use it myself. Our team primarily work with ETFs so there’s some unparalleled expert information there.

You don’t have to be an industry expert to use Nutmegonomics either – plenty of our new starters at Nutmeg have no industry knowledge when they join and that’s how they learn.

Q: Can you explain the difference between investment and trading?
A: I think it’s easy to conflate the two if you’re not in the industry. Investment and trading are very different, but our mutual success depends on both teams collaborating.

Our investment team is made up of experts who spend time studying the market, economy and exchange-traded funds (ETFs). They decide the weighting of portfolios. Traders take instruction from the investment team and buy and sell ETFs at the best price.

Q: I thought all trading was done on the stock exchange?
A: A lot of people do still trade on the stock exchange, but it’s advantageous for our customers if we trade off-exchange.

Q: Is there a little part of you that wishes your job was a bit more Wolf of Wall Street?
A: Not really. That culture and the unethical trading just wouldn’t fit in with the Nutmeg ethos. Personally, I like the more stable way we trade.

Q: How would you describe Nutmeg’s identity within the industry?
A: We’re a disruptor; changing the status quo of how wealth management has traditionally operated.
Being a pioneer, we can face criticism from more well-established names in our field. I know that our CIO, Shaun Port, has to deal with a lot of criticism from traditional wealth managers about our business model.

Q: Do you like nutmeg (the spice)?
A: I do! I actually used it in a cake I baked a few weeks ago.

Q: Do you have any suggestions as to how Nutmeg can continue to be a diverse and transparent company?
A: I think it’s important for us to educate young people on the possibilities available to them in the fintech sector. This industry is open to all, but sometimes it doesn’t seem like that from the outside. I think it would be great for us to partner with some schools in the local area and help the students there appreciate everything this sector can offer them.

Q: What do you like to do in your spare time?
A: I play and watch a lot of sports – especially football and boxing. I also love to travel – I recently rented a little Fiat 500 and drove around Tuscany – everything about it was perfect, from the wine, to the weather, and of course, the food.

Quickfire round

Nandos or Prezzo?
Nandos

iPlayer or Netflix?
Netflix

Football or rugby?
Football

Summer or Winter?
Summer – it’s a tough one though.

Bonfire night or Halloween?
Halloween

Print or digital?
Digital

Night in or night out?
Night out

Skips or quavers?
Quavers

Susanna or Piers?
Piers