Finance is often seen as a man’s market where the adrenalin and ego fuelled fast paced environments are dominated by alpha males locked in fiscal combat with one another. But there are many successful women in the Forex market and we want to break the stereotype and shed a light on some female success stories. Men like to boast about their success and constituting the majority of the Forex and finance markets; therefore we more often than not see blogs, videos and vocal voices from men rather than women. But the argument that women can’t trade successfully or that the finance markets are not for them, is far from true. Curtis Faith wrote an absorbing and authoritative book called “Way of the Turtle” which is a detailed account of the author’s experiment to discover the truth behind whether people are born traders. In a rather biased fashion Mr Faith opted for a pool of 23 people only two of which were women. What he discovered though, was that people can be taught to be “legendary traders”. Essentially proving that the skills required to succeed at trading can be taught to willing and dedicated people. A lack of female role models and a male-centric environment within trading has undoubtedly contributed to the high percentage of men within the industry. In this article we would like to put a spotlight on some of the most successful female traders. Valeria Bednarik Having been actively trading for 11 years since 2003 Valeria Bednarik specialises in the Forex (Foreign Exchange) markets. Valeria is also an active Forex blogger, writing regularly on the FXStreet blog. Also doing public speaking and lectures on forex trading, being a key speaker at the FXStreet International Traders Conference, Valeria has carved out a big name for herself in the Forex industry. Having graduated from the Universidad Católica del Salvador, in Argentina, as a Public Account, she now holds the enviable title of Chief Analyst at FXStreet as well as managing her own company. In addition to managing her own business and working for FXStreet, Valeria also spends her time training new traders all over the world and that is why she has made our top ten list! Jody Samuels Creator of The FX Trader’s EDGE™ Program and one of the USA’s foremost trainers and a highly successful trader, Jody Samuels has over 15 years of experience within the Forex industry. Jody has made her fortune in the millions through the effective use of the Elliot Wave Analysis theory. But Jody took this further by creating the Elliott Wave Ultimate Course, where Jody demonstrates the convergence of Fibonacci, harmonics and Elliot, combining diligent analysis with a straight forward strategy. Jody is both successful and passionate about currency trading and write for her trading blog. Raghee Horner Raghee is the most experienced of the women on our list, with over 20 years’ of experience in the currency markets! Having more than just longevity, Raghee is recognised internationally as a highly acclaimed Forex Trader. Also performing at prestigious forex symposiums as a keynote speaker, Raghee has made a name for herself as a public speaker, trainer and trader! In addition to radio and TV commentary, Raghee also advices and analysis for Auto Chartist, Trading Markets, PitNews.com, and EZ2Trade Software. An author of two bestselling books; “Forex Trading for Maximum Profit” and “Thirty Days of Trading”. A non-pretentious teacher, Raghee focuses on simplified charting and price action strategies when she teaches currencies, futures and equities. Kathy Lien A prolific author and trader, Kathy’s book provides an abundant and pragmatic source of knowledge about currency trading and currency markets. Kathy’s internationally successful Forex trading books include: -“The Little Book of Currency Trading (2010, Wiley)” -“Day Trading and Swing Trading the Currency Market: Technical and Fundamental Strategies to Profit from Market Swings (2008, Wiley)” -Millionaire Traders: How Everyday People Are Beating Wall Street at Its Own Game (2007, Wiley) -High Probability Trading Setups for the Currency Market E-Book (2006, Investopedia) Kathy is the MD of BK Asset Management and as such is responsible for research and analysis as well as portfolio management. Like many of our top 5 women in Forex, Kathy also has a number of other Forex related endeavours that she actively engages in, such as running an FX Signal Service with Boris Schlossberg. Describing herself as “a trader first and analyst second” she began her prestigious career working for JPMorgan Chase. Later joining Global Futures & Forex Ltd as Director of Currency Research, Kathy now teaches seminars all around the world educating people in the intricacies of the currency markets in addition to TV appearances and commentary on CNBC. Jane Foley Jane’s love of A-Level economics, analytics and conjecture lead to continuing her studies in economics all the way to masters’ level. Attracted by the dynamism of the Forex markets Jane began her career in Forex as a Forex Strategist for Barclays Capital back in 1997. Jane now works for Rabobank as a Senior Currency Strategist and said in a recent interview that “Maybe women have to be a little more determined to prevail in a male-dominated work environment”. Source: CMC Markets Singapore