Business

Life as a Professional Multi-Asset Trader & Portfolio Manager: Meet Elliot Hewitt

Published

5 years ago

October 20, 2020

The profession of trader is often portrayed in Hollywood with references that go from the Wolf of Wall Street to The Big Short or even Wall Street. But what is it really like to live as a professional trader in 2020? We’ve asked Multi-Asset Trader and Portfolio Manager Elliot Hewitt.

Elliot Hewitt is a full-time trader based in London, living between Monaco, London and Panama that gathered experience in the institutional side of Finance (Investment funds in London) and on the retail side. His career as a pro trader started from a passion for Finance at a very early age and he reached his first major success at the genesis of Brexit where he profited big from short selling the British Pound which crashed more than 12% in a single day. In this recent interview, we look into the life of this professional trader, the myths, the ups and the downs.

Do you enjoy being a trader and do you find it fulfilling?

“I could honestly not wish for a better job. This is what I wanted to do as a kid, and it is how my life turned out to be. I could talk about financial markets for hours if you let me. The way I see my job as trader is similar to that of a pirate but with more financial data and mathematics: You see I basically spend my days looking for clues and hints into where trading opportunities could be, like a treasure hunt. Once I have gathered all the information and have made my research I can go ahead and take that risk to earn that potential reward. Now, the downside that I recognise being a trader is you need to be comfortable with loneliness. Trading is a very solitary practice; you may feel disconnected from your entourage, but you need to stay strong because stability of mind is key to success in this field” explains Elliot. “Now in order to break the loneliness of my job I have actually created a community of profitable traders that have gone through my rigorous training and with whom I exchange on a daily basis on a virtual trading floor. This has made my career as a trader so much more fulfilling knowing that I have impacted many lives through my programs and through my social media @youngtraderwealth. Reading testimonials from student traders is something I am very proud of.”

Is being a trader stressful and could you lose everything you have?

“Emotions and psychology are a key part of trading that you need to master. In fact, the emotional side is more important than the technical knowledge of trading. The reason why so many traders lose usually comes down to psychology and an incapability of managing one’s emotions. This can of course lead to stress especially when you start mixing other emotions such as managing OPM (other people’s money) or getting into a losing streak that affects your mind. However, the image most people have of traders is that it is a very risky job where you could essentially lose everything you have in a single day and then jump off the highest building in New York. Well sorry to break the myth but that’s not how things work. A major part of being a trader is managing risk. My job is really about finding opportunities that offer positive risk to rewards. So, for me to lose everything I have I would need to ignore all my risk management knowledge and essentially break all my established rules to go all in on a single trade. Professional traders generally don’t do this. This is a mistake beginner make and at that stage you most likely don’t have much to lose. This is why starting to trade financial markets with no real training is so dangerous.”

Do you have a lot of free time and/or take many vacations?

“When it comes to free time, I must say there is a huge difference between working in a financial institution and trading for yourself. Trading for a financial institution such as a fund is very time consuming; you need to be at the office to prepare for the London session open so generally that means 7am at your desk and you end the day between 6pm-9pm depending on the day knowing that you will always have a colleague that stays longer than you do. You see when you work for an institution, there will always be something to do as you are literally getting paid for your time there so the company will try to squeeze as much juice out of you” explains Elliot. “However, working as an independent retail trader is another story. You get to be your own boss which has so many perks but in exchange you need to be self-motivated and self-disciplined to succeed. As of right now, I trade independently and thus can take some time off whenever I wish depending on my earnings of course. My career allows me a level of freedom that is hard to grasp and understand for the majority. I can essentially move residency whenever I want, I can go to Bali and continue working from my hotel, I can arrange my week to only work 2 days, I can make last minute plans in the middle of the week and I can spend my week ends however I want as financial markets aren’t even opened. This is the reason why I am able to live in between residencies in Monaco, London and Panama City and avoid any winter months haha.”

How much money do you make and in your opinion is Hollywood’s caricature of traders accurate?

“My earnings will vary depending on the month’s profit but is on average nicely positive every month. Consistency is key as a trader and I would usually only have one losing month in the year and maybe two mega months where the real cash is made. In terms of how much money I make every month, I prefer to stay discrete, but I can say that I don’t have to worry much about my finances and am able to satisfy my desires and impulses. Now caricatures made by Hollywood movies are exactly that, caricatures. So, the wild parties, the eccentric hobbies and the drug addiction issues are simply some vices and excess people with money can get into, but I don’t think it is specific to traders. Excess is a rich person’s weakness. Just turns out traders generally do make quite a bit of money.

Instagram: @youngtarderwealth

Twitter: @youngtraderwlth

Website: www.youngtraderwealth.com

Business

Inside the $4.3B Quarter: What’s Fueling Black Banx’s Record Revenues

Published

1 week ago

January 16, 2026

Matthew Wiles

Every quarter brings fresh headlines in fintech, but few make the kind of impact achieved by Black Banx in Q2 2025. The Toronto-based global digital banking group, founded by Michael Gastauer, reported an extraordinary USD 4.3 billion in revenue and a record USD 1.6 billion in pre-tax profit, while improving its cost-to-income ratio to 63%.

These results not only highlight the company’s operational efficiency but also mark a pivotal moment in its journey from challenger to global leader. The big question is: what’s fueling such impressive financial performance?

Customer Growth as the Core Driver

One of the clearest engines of revenue growth is Black Banx’s expanding customer base. By Q2 2025, the platform had reached 84 million clients worldwide, up from 69 million at the end of 2024. This 15 million net gain in six months demonstrates both the attractiveness of its services and the scalability of its model.

Unlike traditional banks, which rely heavily on branch expansion, Black Banx leverages digital-first onboarding that allows customers to open accounts within minutes using just a smartphone. This approach is especially effective in regions underserved by legacy institutions, where access to affordable financial tools is in high demand.

More customers don’t just mean higher transaction volumes—they generate a compounding effect where network size, brand trust, and service adoption reinforce one another.

Real-Time Payments and Cross-Border Solutions

A major contributor to Q2 revenues is the platform’s real-time payments infrastructure. Black Banx enables instant cross-border transfers across its 28 supported fiat currencies and multiple cryptocurrencies, helping both individuals and businesses bypass the traditional bottlenecks of international banking.

For freelancers, SMEs, and multinational clients, this means faster liquidity, reduced foreign exchange costs, and simplified global operations. The demand for real-time financial services is growing rapidly—Juniper Research projects global real-time payments turnover to hit USD 58 trillion by 2028—and Black Banx is strategically positioned to capture a significant share of this market.

Crypto Integration as a Revenue Stream

Another key revenue driver is crypto integration. While many traditional institutions remain hesitant, Black Banx embraced digital assets early and has built infrastructure to support Bitcoin, Ethereum, and the Lightning Network. In Q2 2025, 20% of all transactions on the platform were crypto-based, reflecting strong customer appetite for hybrid banking services that bridge fiat and digital assets.

Revenue comes not only from transaction fees but also from value-added services like crypto-to-fiat conversion, staking yields (4–12% APY), and blockchain-enabled payments. For customers in markets with unstable currencies, these services act as a financial lifeline, further expanding the platform’s relevance.

AI-Powered Efficiency and Risk Management

Record revenues would be less impressive if costs ballooned at the same rate. But Black Banx has proven adept at balancing growth with efficiency. Its cost-to-income ratio improved to 63% in Q2, down from 69% a year earlier, thanks to heavy reliance on AI-powered automation.

AI now drives fraud detection, compliance, and customer onboarding—areas where traditional banks often struggle with cost inefficiencies. By automating these processes, Black Banx can process millions of transactions securely while maintaining profitability at scale. This level of efficiency is rare in fintech, where high growth often comes at the expense of margins.

Regional Expansion and Untapped Markets

Geography also plays a role in fueling revenues. Much of the Q2 growth came from Africa, South Asia, and Latin America—regions where demand for mobile-first banking continues to soar. In 2024 alone, Black Banx reported a 32% increase in SME clients from the Middle East and Africa, signaling the strength of its positioning in underserved markets.

By extending services to populations previously excluded from formal banking—migrant workers, rural communities, and small businesses—Black Banx taps into vast pools of latent demand. The strategy proves that financial inclusion and profitability are not mutually exclusive but mutually reinforcing.

Diversified Revenue Streams

Another factor behind Q2’s record revenues is Black Banx’s diversified business model. Income is not tied to a single service but spread across multiple streams, including:

Transaction fees from cross-border transfers and payments.
Crypto trading and exchange services.
Premium account features for high-net-worth clients.
Corporate services for SMEs and international businesses.

This diversification insulates the company against volatility in any single segment, creating stable revenue growth even in shifting market conditions.

Michael Gastauer’s Strategic Blueprint

Behind these results is Michael Gastauer’s long-term strategy: scale aggressively but with efficiency, innovation, and inclusion at the core. His vision has always been to create a borderless financial ecosystem, and Q2 2025’s performance is evidence that this vision is not only achievable but sustainable.

By balancing mass-market accessibility with premium features, and by blending fiat with digital assets, Gastauer has positioned Black Banx as a category-defining player in global finance.

The Road Ahead: Toward 100 Million Clients

Looking forward, the company’s goal of reaching 100 million customers by the end of 2025 will likely be the next catalyst for revenue growth. More customers mean more transactions, more data insights, and more opportunities to refine and expand its service offering.

If current momentum holds, the USD 4.3 billion quarterly revenue milestone could be just the beginning of an even larger growth story. The challenge will be ensuring systems scale securely while maintaining trust in an environment where privacy and compliance are paramount.

A Record That Signals More to Come

Black Banx’s Q2 2025 performance—USD 4.3 billion in revenue, USD 1.6 billion in pre-tax profit, 84 million clients worldwide, and a lean 63% cost-to-income ratio—is more than a financial milestone. It is a signal of how the future of banking is being rewritten by platforms that are borderless, crypto-inclusive, and data-driven.

What fueled this record-breaking quarter is not one innovation but a combination of strategies—scalable onboarding, real-time payments, crypto integration, AI efficiency, and expansion into underserved regions. Together, they form a model that doesn’t just challenge traditional banking but actively builds the foundation for global dominance.

For Black Banx, the road ahead is clear: the $4.3 billion quarter is not an endpoint but a launchpad for even greater scale and profitability.