Arthur Hayes is exploring the risky frontiers of finance—running BitMEX,
a Bitcoin futures exchange in Hong Kong.
In 2013, Arthur Hayes was biding his time as an equities trader for Citigroup Inc. in Hong Kong.
His energy—he’s a fitness fanatic and an early riser—was better suited to another era in finance.
Six years earlier, as a recent arrival in the former British colony, he’d gotten a taste of what the
golden age in banking felt like when he worked in the “snake pit,” the equity derivatives sales desk,
at Deutsche Bank AG’s office. The markets were on fire. Traders were taking helicopter trips to
the casinos of Macau to celebrate their triumphs. Hayes loved the rush of the trading floor at full
throttle along with the life that went with it, including nights at the Dragon-i club.
At Citi, a few years after the financial crisis brought a new order to the industry,
those madcap days seemed like ancient history. Indeed, he was about to lose his job
in one of the periodic culls that big banks carried out after the crash.
But Hayes wasn’t too distraught: He’d discovered Bitcoin.
...
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2018-02-01/bored-with-banking-this-former-citi-trader-went-full-crypto...
I really recommend reading this article. It illustrates how attractive the whole
cryptocurrency scene is (especially after the banking sector has lost some of its glory)
and the amazing opportunities that it still offers.
Arthur Hayes also seems like a complete boss. After being dropped by Citi he simply
went on to found BitMEX, which now makes nearly 100M $ / year in profits.
I DO NOT THINK THERE IS ANYTHING GLORIOUS ABOUT THIS EXCEPT THE FACT THAT HE USED TO HAVE A BIG NAME IN THE BANKING INDUSTRY, PARTICULARLY AT CITI. You know, these kind of situations happen to almost all of us. At the pit of downfall, we find ways to elevate ourselves by seeking shelter through means that is in contrary to our beliefs once YET at the same time we believe it can rescue us from reaching rock bottom. As to Hayes, I think the guy just wants to save himself from anything that will put him down financially and psychologically. Hence, he is doing his best to combat such by being proactive in terms of dealing with his current situation. And I tell you, what he is doing at present is effective because he is making noise. Can I say there is something political about this yet again?
