Ikan Bilis: The people’s prop trading fund.
Today, I introduce to your Ikan Bilis Capital: The people’s prop trading fund.
Ikan Bilis is a Southeast Asian delicacy that is made out of deep fried caramelised anchovies with sambal chilli. Sambal is a spice used to mask the fishy smell of the dried anchovies and also to give it slightly more shelf life than other foods in an era where the cold storage of food was not accessible to all. Like many other kinds of preserved food, it originated from poor and average people who had to eat out of convenience rather than their heart desires.
In many ways, Ikan Bilis Capital was born out of the same constraints and limitations faced by me in my own life. I’m someone of fairly average intellect, I’m 31 this year and have neither achieved nor created anything that is of worth. I’m not particular good with people, untalented with the art of conversation or persuasion, it was impossible to get anyone to give me their money to trade with. As a trader, I started trading my first $500 account 10 years back and have accumulated a loss of 6 figures since I started trading.
In 2015, I was trading a 4 figure sum in my second attempt to make it as a day trader. I remember I was in London for a 1 month work attachment and there I made an English friend and was introduced to the concept of prop trading. He explained it to me as a sure way of making money and as a sceptic I thought it was surely a scam. I went on to wipe out many accounts after that trading forex and crypto racking up a cumulative 6 figure loss over time. Fast forward 5 years later, I was awarded my first prop trading fund and am now trading a 6 digit account.
It is true that most people will lose money day trading and will not recommend anyone without the proper training and thinking that it’s a way to get rich quick. It takes years of deliberate practice in risk control, managing your mental and emotional state and the ability to analyse large amount of information. More importantly, you need to acquire the intuition to enter and exit trades at the right time before you can start making money consistently enough to make trading your main source of income.
Does joining a prop trading firm make it any easier to become a professional trader? It does not. In fact, I’d argue that for most people they may fail more frequently and often before they pass an evaluation. However, failing faster and better is important to help a trader self-evaluate and make the necessary adjustments and small incremental improvements over time in order to cultivate the right approach to profitable trading. It is the necessary evil.
If what I’ve shared with you above resonates with you and you like the freedom that working as a day trader can bring you, please consider signing up for one of the trading challenges on Ikan Bilis. We’ve studied all the different prop traders and our trading challenges are designed with your success and growth in mind.
Please also join our discord channel. Your path to success does not have to be a lonely one. Find a mentor, a friend or a partner in your journey to financial freedom. Give us a feedback on how our community can improve. You feedback matters to us!
