Steve Radez, CEO of Essex Radez, has a strong claim to be the world’s first automated trader. Together with Essex Radez’s CTO, John Muelhausen, he explains how technology and automation have been constant themes in a three-decade trading career.

Mr Immediate

Steve, how did it all start?

Radez: After leaving college I worked for IBM for two years before moving on to Merrill Lynch as a retail account executive in 1970. I was not a good one – good AEs find out what the customer needs and sells it to them. I on the other hand wanted to deploy certain trading strategies I had developed. I left in 1977 when one of my largest customers agreed to capitalise me for a seat on the CBOE (Chicago Board Options Exchange) and Essex Radez was formed. Waiting for flow to arrive in the pit was pretty tedious, so I would fulfil my volume requirements there in the morning before trading – more profitably – from upstairs, for the rest of the day. I finally left the pit in 1979 to trade upstairs permanently. ...

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