If you’re new to the financial game, day trading might sound like a complicated way to make a lot of money fast. However, trading on the stock market is a lot more common than you would think. So, how many day traders are in the world?
There are no statistics on the specific number of day traders in the world. However, there are around 10 million active traders in the foreign exchange market (Forex). 9.6 million of those traders perform online trading, meaning that 1 in 728 people worldwide trades online in Forex.
In this article, we look at day trading and where you can find the most popular markets. We also examine what most traders are trading and how successful they are. Lastly, we discuss why day trading is so popular.
IMPORTANT SIDENOTE: I surveyed 1500+ traders to understand how social trading impacted their trading outcomes. The results shocked my belief system! Read my latest article: ‘Exploring Social Trading: Community, Profit, and Collaboration’ for my in-depth findings through the data collected from this survey!
Table of Contents
What Is Day Trading?
Day trading is the practice of buying and selling positions within a day to avoid the overnight risk of losing. A day trader won’t hold a position for more than a day or two, depending on their trading strategies. A day trader’s goal is to profit from the short-term price change of a specific position.
Where Are the Most Popular Markets?
The most popular markets globally are the American market, the Asian market, and the European market. These markets increased their trading numbers thanks to a surge of online platforms for traders. These platforms make it easier for new traders to start.
As of November 2020, there are around 1.65 million active traders in North America. There are about 3 million traders in Asia and 1.5 million in Europe. The foreign exchange market’s worldwide trading volume is 5 trillion dollars daily, making Forex the world’s largest financial market.
The United Kingdom has the most online traders in Europe. At least 1 in 100 Brits has traded online. Millennials represent 58% of the UK’s total traders. However, less than 1% of active traders in the UK earn more than 75,000 pounds a year.
Most traders live in Asia, where at least 1 in every 600 internet users in the region has performed online trades. Africa, however, has the newest online traders in the world, with around 1.5 million active traders. Many experts believe this number could grow higher in the next decade.
You should know that the foreign exchange market is so popular thanks to the lower regulations for new traders and day traders. The term pattern day trader means that the person will get more restrictions and limits than others. It is common in most local markets but not in the Forex.
Combining the lack of regulations and requirements, we can assume that day traders prefer to trade online and in the foreign exchange market.
How Many Day Traders Are Successful?
No one knows precisely how many day traders are successful. However, industry experts report that only 1% of day traders make a considerable profit after taxes and fees.
Day trading is a dangerous trading strategy that can lead you to considerable profits or significant losses.
What Makes a Day Trader Successful?
These are the standard features you will find in successful day traders:
- Self-discipline: It will be you against the market, and the market will always have the advantage. Day traders need the self-discipline to get through the bad times and control themselves during the good ones.
- Risk control: To become a top trader, you’ll need to know the risks and the rewards of a position. If you want to make money as a day trader, you must know the risks better than anything else.
- Courage: Most people follow the trends and end up losing a lot of capital. Successful day traders don’t follow trends; they create them.
- Emotional control: One of the most common features of failed day traders is panic-selling. You will notice that the best day traders do not let a bad position upset them because they need to stay focused to avoid more losses. There is no room for emotions in day trading or trading in general.
- Patience: It will take time to see any significant earnings, but no time to see the losses. Day traders need to be patient and stay focused.
- Dedication: Trading requires a lot of time. Day traders spend time on both trading and developing the skills needed to become the best trader possible. If you give yourself the time to understand the markets and positions, you’ll get further in the day trading industry.
The Best Day Traders in the World
Although it is impossible to know the number of day traders worldwide, we know who the most successful day traders are. They combine all the skills and discipline that a day trader needs to be the best.
Here is a list of the best day traders in the world:
- Ross Cameron: Many consider him to be the wealthiest day trader in the world. Cameron was born in Vermont, and after significant losses on his investments, he decided to manage his fund personally. He is considered one of the pioneers of modern day-trading and is one of the most popular day traders globally.
- Sasha Edakov: One of the most popular day traders globally, Sasha Edakov has also become a best-selling author by writing books about day trading and the best strategies to succeed.
- Rayner Teo: He is one of the youngest day traders of the 1%. Teo teaches new traders the best ways of not losing money when day trading. His YouTube channel has over 170,000 subscribers, and his website receives almost 30,000 visits a day.
- Steven A. Cohen: He is the most influential trader in the world and the 35th richest person on earth. Cohen’s net worth is 8.3 billion dollars, and he is the director of SAC Capital Partners.
- Mark Minervini: He is known for making a 128% profit in his first year as a day trader. It is an almost impossible achievement that has solidified him as one of the world’s best day traders. He recommends new traders to keep an eye on trends before buying and not be seduced by the lowest prices.
- Geroge Soros: The man who bankrupted England’s bank is a legendary figure of the stock markets. George Soros is in the top 10 wealthiest people globally and has been trading for more than four decades.
- Bill Lipschutz: When he was a student, he turned 12,000 USD into 250,000 with 100 positions. Then, he lost everything and stopped trading for a while. After finishing his studies, he went back into day trading and generated 300 million USD for his employer’s bank.
Why Is Day Trading So Popular?
Day trading is so popular because many people see it as an easy way to make money fast. It is risky but highly rewarding. However, more than 90% of day traders will lose money instead of making profits.
Another factor is the rise of online platforms that make it easy for new traders to start day trading in the Forex.
Author’s Recommendations: Top Trading and Investment Resources To Consider
Before concluding this article, I wanted to share few trading and investment resources that I have vetted, with the help of 50+ consistently profitable traders, for you. I am confident that you will greatly benefit in your trading journey by considering one or more of these resources.
- Roadmap to Becoming a Consistently Profitable Trader: I surveyed 5000+ traders (and interviewed 50+ profitable traders) to create the best possible step by step trading guide for you. Read my article: ‘7 Proven Steps To Profitable Trading’ to learn about my findings from surveying 5000+ traders, and to learn how these learnings can be leveraged to your advantage.
- Best Broker For Trading Success: I reviewed 15+ brokers and discussed my findings with 50+ consistently profitable traders. Post all that assessment, the best all round broker that our collective minds picked was M1 Finance. If you are looking to open a brokerage account, choose M1 Finance. You just cannot go wrong with it! Click Here To Sign Up for M1 Finance Today!
- Best Trading Courses You Can Take For Free (or at extremely low cost): I reviewed 30+ trading courses to recommend you the best resource, and found Trading Strategies in Emerging Markets Specialization on Coursera to beat every other course on the market. Plus, if you complete this course within 7 days, it will cost you nothing and will be absolutely free! Click Here To Sign Up Today! (If you don’t find this course valuable, you can cancel anytime within the 7 days trial period and pay nothing.)
- Best Passive Investment Platform For Exponential (Potentially) Returns: By enabling passive investments into a Bitcoin ETF, Acorns gives you the best opportunity to make exponential returns on your passive investments. Plus, Acorns is currently offering a $15 bonus for simply singing up to their platform – so that is one opportunity you don’t want to miss! (assuming you are interested in this platform). Click Here To Get $15 Bonus By Signing Up For Acorns Today! (It will take you less than 5 mins to sign up, and it is totally worth it.)
Conclusion
There are over 10 million active traders in the world. Most of them perform their trades through online platforms, which is where day traders tend to operate.
Overall, day trading requires many abilities and skills that most people don’t consider before starting. This lack of understanding makes day trading a high-risk option for new traders, as only 1% of day traders will earn significant profits.
If you want to start day trading, we recommend studying the most successful day traders and their strategies. Understanding them and the market could help you become part of the 1%.
BEFORE YOU GO: Don’t forget to check out my latest article – ‘Exploring Social Trading: Community, Profit, and Collaboration’. I surveyed 1500+ traders to identify the impact social trading can have on your trading performance, and shared all my findings in this article. No matter where you are in your trading journey today, I am confident that you will find this article helpful!
Affiliate Disclosure: We participate in several affiliate programs and may be compensated if you make a purchase using our referral link, at no additional cost to you. You can, however, trust the integrity of our recommendation. Affiliate programs exist even for products that we are not recommending. We only choose to recommend you the products that we actually believe in.
