Man or Machine?
Systematic or discretionary trading? What’s better?
As quants we’re inclined to favor a systematic approach. At the same time we realize that systematic and discretionary trading processes are essentially the same, except for that the former encapsulates the decision-making dynamics in a rules-based framework while the latter doesn’t.
Coded trading systems enable us to methodically repeat a tried and trusted method. That’s a great thing. We let the machine place our bets in the markets and remove ourselves from the day-to-day trading process. If our betting system has edge, we should be rewarded with gains.
Humans on the other hand can be highly inventive and see things which a machine cannot – or at least not easily. But how can you make sure that what you see is real and not just a noisy Fata Morgana of the markets? Well, there’s never a guarantee, but when you’re able to blend statistical observations with long-term trading experience, you can increase the odds of discovering something valuable.
Twoquants® is both. Model-driven, but human. That’s our recipe for playing the hardest game in the world.
“No man is better than a machine, and no machine is better than a man with a machine.” (Paul Tudor Jones)
LATEST BLOG POST
Extreme Edge
It’s been great to be on the Chat with Traders podcast on 7 September 2022 for episode #243. This write-up is meant to complement the episode and provide additional background on the warrant arbitrage trades I executed between 2015 and 2019. Before we start, episode #243 was Aaron’s last recording, and I’d like to take a moment to thank him for all the great content he’s produced during the past years. [...]
MEDIA
The Interplay Between Crypto and Global Macro
I had the pleasure of moderating the the Crypto & Global Macro panel at Token2049 in London on 9 November 2022. With me on the panel were Dan Tapiero from 10T Holdings, Jordi Alexander from Selini Capital, and Jean-Marie Mognetti, the Founder & CEO of CoinShares. Recorded on November 9, 2022.
TRADE IDEAS & TOOLS
Position Sizing: A Systematic Tool to Add to Your Trading Toolkit
When most people think about systematic trading, they likely picture a price chart with a plethora of moving averages, oscillators, and trend lines all with the goal of nailing the perfect entry right before a market takes off for the moon. While a good deal of time in systematic strategy development is devoted to entry and exit methodology, the greatest [...]
Methods to the Madness – The 2Q Newsletter
Our MTTM newsletter covers a diverse range of topics. When we write about trading, we aim to synthesize quant-driven investment ideas into actionable trades. We zero in on price trends, momentum, spreads, correlation, and volatility. We look at futures, equities, ETPs, options, and digital assets – and anything else that crosses our quantitative trading minds. This, we hope, makes the MTTM newsletter original and unique.