Although AI has yet to generate alpha for traders, it still poses a significant threat to the job security of those on trading desks. A sales trader with over 20 years of experience, speaking anonymously in an Ask-Me-Anything (AMA) session on our new forum The Bubble, has shed light on why this is the case. Click here to join The Bubble by eFinancialCareers, our new anonymous community. ✍️ “Half the roles performed by humans no longer require human intervention, ” the sales trader explained. The routine tasks of most sales traders—such as “admin, report compiling, data extraction, news collation, and writing summaries”—can now be handled by AI, sometimes even more efficiently. This is especially true for non-specialist roles; however, this trend isn’t new. He noted that “over the past decade, a large portion of generalist equity sales roles have disappeared. ” As a specialist equity sales trader, he views his own job prospects more optimistically. He believes specialists will be less affected since “clients will always prioritize engaging with someone who knows their sector deeply, can challenge their views, and can identify early dislocations or opportunities. ” His advice is to specialize in nuanced fields like biotech or financial equities, which involve complex regulatory challenges. Banks continue to hire humans despite AI’s capabilities because they are “genuinely scared of AI, ” according to the sales trader.

They avoid using public AI models due to risks related to data leakage and compliance. In contrast, internal large language models (LLMs) are “limited, heavily constrained, and nowhere near as capable as ChatGPT. ” Additionally, there is a political dimension: the “old guard” resist AI adoption as it threatens to “reveal inefficiencies, flatten hierarchies, and automate roles that have been protected for decades. ” Still, these are temporary barriers; the sales trader asserted that AI “will eliminate parts of the trading floor that shouldn’t still exist. ” The sales trader will be answering questions in his AMA until this Thursday. If you want to participate, join The Bubble, our new anonymous forum. Recently launched in open beta, The Bubble has grown into a community of over 2, 000 finance professionals—including employees from leading investment banks and trading firms, alongside aspiring professionals from top universities. We plan to host AMAs regularly, so check back frequently for upcoming sessions. Have a confidential story, tip, or comment to share?Contact us via WhatsApp: http://wa. me/442079977910 (+44 20 7997 7910), Telegram: @AlexMcMurray, or Signal: @AlexMcMurrayEFC. 88. You can also submit anonymously through this form or email editortips@efinancialcareers. com.