IN-DEPTH SERIES
Mr. Asif Poiserwala
Mr. Sarfaraz Lakhani of Calibre Creators (CC) interviewed Mr. Asif Poiserwala Head - Training, Axis Securities Ltd, one of the leading Brokerage houses in India. He is also invited as a guest speaker on Technical Analysis at prestigious B-schools at Mumbai.
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| Mr. Asif Poiserwala, Head - Training, Axis Securities Ltd. |
Asif has an MBA in Marketing, He started off his career with the Wealth Management Division of Citibank.
He has rich experience across in the Financial and Training arena, right from Training Management, Training Delivery, Business Development, Marketing, Content development, Drafting Process notes and Reports, Technical Analysis of Equities and Derivatives, Public Speaking, Conducting Training Workshops and Sales.
His work experience spans across Banks, Broking and Entrepreneurship (working with a Start-up venture). He is a guest speaker on Technical Analysis at some of the Top B-Schools at Mumbai.
His areas of interest include Sports, Music and not to mention meeting and interacting with people and of course not to mention Trainings about which he is very passionate about.
Asif, It is my immense pleasure and honour for Calibre Creators to be talking to an expert in the field of Trading in Equities. It is a subject in which very few people have the expertise. It requires a lot of training and an analytical mind to understand the nuances of market trading. We will try to help our readers understand what it takes to be an expert and the challenges you encounter.
CC.1 Tell us about your early career and what led you till this place?
AP: To begin with, let me thank you for having me at Calibre Creators, it’s a pleasure. After completing my MBA in Marketing, I started my career with the Wealth Management division at Citibank, followed by HSBC. I soon realised that although I was very good at Sales, it was not where I could see myself 10 years down the line. A marketing guy deciding not to pursue Sales, doesn’t leave you with much opportunities at a young age. I didn’t have any other specialization to fall back on. I took a very tough and brave call – to quit my well paying job – and introspect. All credit goes to my parents, who allowed me this privilege, which most parents would condemn. The timing couldn’t be worse, as it was the 2008 global financial crisis, leading to a recession. After a few months of heading nowhere, I happened to meet Mr. N. S. Fidai, my dad’s ex-colleague at DCB Bank, who was into equity trading and training, along with his nephew Mr. Nooresh Merani at the time. I learnt the subject of Technical Analysis, which is the study of charts for determining the direction of stocks and indices. I found it very interesting, and that is how I entered the world of stock market trading and investing.
CC.1 Tell us about your early career and what led you till this place?
AP: To begin with, let me thank you for having me at Calibre Creators, it’s a pleasure. After completing my MBA in Marketing, I started my career with the Wealth Management division at Citibank, followed by HSBC. I soon realised that although I was very good at Sales, it was not where I could see myself 10 years down the line. A marketing guy deciding not to pursue Sales, doesn’t leave you with much opportunities at a young age. I didn’t have any other specialization to fall back on. I took a very tough and brave call – to quit my well paying job – and introspect. All credit goes to my parents, who allowed me this privilege, which most parents would condemn. The timing couldn’t be worse, as it was the 2008 global financial crisis, leading to a recession. After a few months of heading nowhere, I happened to meet Mr. N. S. Fidai, my dad’s ex-colleague at DCB Bank, who was into equity trading and training, along with his nephew Mr. Nooresh Merani at the time. I learnt the subject of Technical Analysis, which is the study of charts for determining the direction of stocks and indices. I found it very interesting, and that is how I entered the world of stock market trading and investing.
CC.2 When did you realise that you were good at this? Did you explore other career options or you sank so deeply into this that you never got to stick your neck out to do that?
AP: I was offered an opportunity to head the Business Development and Marketing by Mr. Fidai for their startup. I accepted the role as I saw an opportunity to learn, and be in the company good people. Very soon an incident occurred, that changed my life. I got a call from the Economic Affairs Committee (EAC) of Aga Khan Economic Planning Board for India, a non-profit organization, to conduct financial seminars for the Ismaili community across India. I was happy to be a part of a social cause, and deliver sessions to vast audiences at a very young age. I got a lot of positive feedback and I was really enjoying this role. This is when I decided that Trainings is what I want to be in, as this was something which gave me immense happiness, and I could see myself doing for the rest of my life. This is how it began. Later, I joined Axis Securities Ltd. as a Training Manager in 2013.
AP: I was offered an opportunity to head the Business Development and Marketing by Mr. Fidai for their startup. I accepted the role as I saw an opportunity to learn, and be in the company good people. Very soon an incident occurred, that changed my life. I got a call from the Economic Affairs Committee (EAC) of Aga Khan Economic Planning Board for India, a non-profit organization, to conduct financial seminars for the Ismaili community across India. I was happy to be a part of a social cause, and deliver sessions to vast audiences at a very young age. I got a lot of positive feedback and I was really enjoying this role. This is when I decided that Trainings is what I want to be in, as this was something which gave me immense happiness, and I could see myself doing for the rest of my life. This is how it began. Later, I joined Axis Securities Ltd. as a Training Manager in 2013.
CC.3 At the start of your career, did you ever perceive that you will reach this position?
AP: Absolutely not. I was never certain about what I wanted to pursue in life. The gamble to quit my job and explore options, paid off. I realized there was immense scope to make money in the markets using technical analysis, if followed with discipline. Training turned out to be a passion, and delivering full day training sessions never seemed like workload.
AP: Absolutely not. I was never certain about what I wanted to pursue in life. The gamble to quit my job and explore options, paid off. I realized there was immense scope to make money in the markets using technical analysis, if followed with discipline. Training turned out to be a passion, and delivering full day training sessions never seemed like workload.
CC.4 Now tell our readers about a typical day at your job.
AP: The lock-down and Work From Home (WFH) is an aberration. Otherwise, the day starts off by watching business news early morning. I track the market opening at 9:15 AM, and start off my work. The day typically has activities like training coordination, preparing MIS and reports, meetings with Sales, Product, Operations & Marketing teams, content creation, and scheduling trainings. On certain days, I deliver trainings to our internal and external customers.
AP: The lock-down and Work From Home (WFH) is an aberration. Otherwise, the day starts off by watching business news early morning. I track the market opening at 9:15 AM, and start off my work. The day typically has activities like training coordination, preparing MIS and reports, meetings with Sales, Product, Operations & Marketing teams, content creation, and scheduling trainings. On certain days, I deliver trainings to our internal and external customers.
CC.5 Is it a function of an individual or it is a team-oriented performance?
AP: It’s a blend of both, as our current structure has a large number of team members who are delivering trainings due to new product launches. A lot of synergy is at play between various departments and functions, to execute the plans.
CC.6 How accurate are the predictions based upon technical analysis in terms of hit and miss?
AP: This is a question which I am asked often. I will try and give you a cricketing analogy, since most of us understand the sport well. How many runs can be scored by a batsman if he faces 30 deliveries? It could be 20, 30 or even 60 depending on which batsman is playing (Dravid, Rahane or Gayle). Similarly, the accuracy in predictions depends upon the practice, discipline and experience of the trader / investor. However, to give you a number, I believe 75% - 80% is very much possible for disciplined market players. An accuracy ratio of 80% might not sound impressive or heroic, but it can work wonders for your portfolio. Never believe any expert or organization, who claim to have an accuracy ratio of 90% or above. Doesn’t happen. For those rare ones who can actually achieve 95%, will never be keen to share their trades with you.
AP: It’s a blend of both, as our current structure has a large number of team members who are delivering trainings due to new product launches. A lot of synergy is at play between various departments and functions, to execute the plans.
CC.6 How accurate are the predictions based upon technical analysis in terms of hit and miss?
AP: This is a question which I am asked often. I will try and give you a cricketing analogy, since most of us understand the sport well. How many runs can be scored by a batsman if he faces 30 deliveries? It could be 20, 30 or even 60 depending on which batsman is playing (Dravid, Rahane or Gayle). Similarly, the accuracy in predictions depends upon the practice, discipline and experience of the trader / investor. However, to give you a number, I believe 75% - 80% is very much possible for disciplined market players. An accuracy ratio of 80% might not sound impressive or heroic, but it can work wonders for your portfolio. Never believe any expert or organization, who claim to have an accuracy ratio of 90% or above. Doesn’t happen. For those rare ones who can actually achieve 95%, will never be keen to share their trades with you.
CC.7 What role does Information Technology play in your predictive analysis?
AP: A very significant one for sure. Technical analysis is all about charts, and charts are predominantly a function of price and volumes. Accordingly, technology has a major role to play in analysing stocks and indices. These days, there are wonderful softwares and sites which provide real-time charts – free of cost! Professionals subscribe to high end paid softwares, as per their requirements. Free real-time alerts are also available for stock prices and Index levels.
CC.8 We as common people have seen that even if there is a speculation anywhere in globe or before or after budget presentations or declaration of quarterly or annual performance results, markets react sharply? Why does it happen and how can one protect one’s investments during such a scenario?
AP: This is a very relevant question. Markets are always driven by sentiments. Any local or global news has a bearing on specific stocks and markets in general. Like the entry in stocks, exit is equally important. This means if you buy a stock at 200 and it goes up to 230, it is equally important to know where to sell (exit). A lot of times people wait for a higher target and the stock falls back to 200, or even lesser. To answer your question, technical analysis shows you a pictorial story, of what is cooking behind the scenes, a little before the actual news flashes. In other words, the formation of patterns on the chart gives you an early indication of the direction (either upward or downward) ‘most likely’ the stock or index will head to. This helps you in 2 ways: either you enter into a trade as per the signal, or exit the stock if it is about to go against you (exit the stock which you are holding, if the indication is of a downward move.) As far as result announcements are concerned, it is advisable to avoid taking trades around these times, unless you are a high risk trader, and can maintain a strict stop loss.
CC.9 Asif, two questions which are very intriguing to me:
AP: A very significant one for sure. Technical analysis is all about charts, and charts are predominantly a function of price and volumes. Accordingly, technology has a major role to play in analysing stocks and indices. These days, there are wonderful softwares and sites which provide real-time charts – free of cost! Professionals subscribe to high end paid softwares, as per their requirements. Free real-time alerts are also available for stock prices and Index levels.
CC.8 We as common people have seen that even if there is a speculation anywhere in globe or before or after budget presentations or declaration of quarterly or annual performance results, markets react sharply? Why does it happen and how can one protect one’s investments during such a scenario?
AP: This is a very relevant question. Markets are always driven by sentiments. Any local or global news has a bearing on specific stocks and markets in general. Like the entry in stocks, exit is equally important. This means if you buy a stock at 200 and it goes up to 230, it is equally important to know where to sell (exit). A lot of times people wait for a higher target and the stock falls back to 200, or even lesser. To answer your question, technical analysis shows you a pictorial story, of what is cooking behind the scenes, a little before the actual news flashes. In other words, the formation of patterns on the chart gives you an early indication of the direction (either upward or downward) ‘most likely’ the stock or index will head to. This helps you in 2 ways: either you enter into a trade as per the signal, or exit the stock if it is about to go against you (exit the stock which you are holding, if the indication is of a downward move.) As far as result announcements are concerned, it is advisable to avoid taking trades around these times, unless you are a high risk trader, and can maintain a strict stop loss.
CC.9 Asif, two questions which are very intriguing to me:
(a) There are hundreds and hundreds of stocks that must be trading on the stock exchanges – how do you keep track of each one of them.
(b) If you see a specific stock or a number of stocks, either from the same industry or multiple industries being highly volatile, how do you manage to take action in a matter of seconds to either recommend buy or sale.
AP: (a) It is extremely difficult to keep a track of 5000+ stocks listed on the Indian markets, and is not a prerequisite to making money in the markets as well. I track my set of 100 to 150 stocks which are highly traded, and are quality companies. I scan the charts of these companies (night activity), and try to identify patterns (bullish or bearish – as money can be made in rising as well as falling markets), and keep them on my radar. Stock alerts can be very handy for people like us, who are on job, and not full time traders. Opportunity can also exist in the balance 4800 stocks which I don’t track. So, the moment I come across any recommendation from either Whatsapp groups, broker recommendations, business news channels or friends, I simply open that specific stock chart on my Mobile App (yes, technology permits this) and decide about taking that trade or not.
(b) Trading should be as less impulsive as possible. Research should always be your first reference point for taking a trade. Hence, as I mentioned above, charts should be analysed in advance, before the markets open. I make a watch list of stocks with the exact levels for entering a trade. I do not provide recommendations to clients as it is against the compliance of my organisation. However, occasionally I post my views on stocks and Index levels on Twitter.
CC.10 How should one invest and how much should one invest. What should be the strategies for an individual, especially Doctors from the medical profession?
AP: It is very critical to know what one is doing in the markets. Hence, having the right knowledge is of utmost importance. There are predominantly 2 approaches – Fundamental analysis (FA) and Technical Analysis (TA). FA consists of reading balance sheets, P&L reports, financial ratios, cash flows, order inflows, sectoral / government news, etc. FA can be used by people form accounting background, C.A.s or MBAs with Finance specialization. FA is effective for long term investments – typically 3-5 years horizon or more. On the other hand, TA involves reading the chart and analyzing the pattern or other technical parameters. It does not require any prior academic background. I personally believe TA is much easy to learn and practice, as compared to FA. TA can be used for short term trading, as well as identifying stocks which can give you returns of 20% to 50% in the medium term. A lot of software engineers, IT professionals, doctors, lawyers, media professionals use technical analysis, to undertake trades which they can hold on for 2 weeks to 2 months, thereby making additional money apart from their salaries.
One should always invest the surplus funds which they can spare, after meeting all the monthly expenses. It is also important not to invest all / majority of the funds in a single stock, as it is against the laws of trading as well as investing. A lot of courses are available these days on FA and TA, which the doctors can enroll for. They can also opt for seeking professional advice, by paying the relevant fees.
CC.11 To young and budding professionals planning to pursue a career in Technical Analysis, what would be your advice to them? How rewarding and challenging is this profession. I am interested in know what specific skills does one need to have to do what people like you do.
AP: My advice to them would be to try and keep things simple. Making and following complicated charts is not the key to success in TA. I would advise them to learn TA from a professional teacher or institute, and not rely only on internet and Youtube, as the importance of a guide / coach or a teacher is very essential. A lot of my students tell me that what they have learnt in my workshops or webinars, was very different to what they had read or seen online. I will again give a reference to cricket – one cannot learn to play professional cricket just by watching videos and articles of Sachin Tendulkar or Shane Warne. A teacher will guide you on the nuances of trading, how to avoid getting into false moves, strategies to be applied, and a lot more.
I would advise young professional not to dream about professional trading, till the time they are consistently successful at making money in the markets. They can always focus on their existing profession, and use TA to generate additional income, at least for the initial few years. As far as skills are concerned, it would be practice, discipline and money management.
CC.12 How do you keep yourself abreast of the latest developments?
AP: I watch business news channels, read articles on financial websites / apps. Being a part of a few investment / trading groups on social media helps me to get updates of important events and happenings. Finally, the most important activity for me is analysing the charts.
CC.13 If you had the power to change some thing(s), what would they be?
AP: I would want to change human psychology for the good. Seeing the state of women in villages and rural India makes me sad. I would like to change the rigid and orthodox mindset of lesser educated beings, to a more accommodating and liberal mindset towards women. I would want to change (replace) the emotion of hate to that of Love, and wish for a peaceful blissful planet.
CC.14 Besides doing Technical Analysis and Training what are your personal interests?
AP: I love music, and sometimes play the guitar. I have a passion for bike riding and playing cricket. I write poetry and also perform stand-up comedy.
AP: (a) It is extremely difficult to keep a track of 5000+ stocks listed on the Indian markets, and is not a prerequisite to making money in the markets as well. I track my set of 100 to 150 stocks which are highly traded, and are quality companies. I scan the charts of these companies (night activity), and try to identify patterns (bullish or bearish – as money can be made in rising as well as falling markets), and keep them on my radar. Stock alerts can be very handy for people like us, who are on job, and not full time traders. Opportunity can also exist in the balance 4800 stocks which I don’t track. So, the moment I come across any recommendation from either Whatsapp groups, broker recommendations, business news channels or friends, I simply open that specific stock chart on my Mobile App (yes, technology permits this) and decide about taking that trade or not.
(b) Trading should be as less impulsive as possible. Research should always be your first reference point for taking a trade. Hence, as I mentioned above, charts should be analysed in advance, before the markets open. I make a watch list of stocks with the exact levels for entering a trade. I do not provide recommendations to clients as it is against the compliance of my organisation. However, occasionally I post my views on stocks and Index levels on Twitter.
CC.10 How should one invest and how much should one invest. What should be the strategies for an individual, especially Doctors from the medical profession?
AP: It is very critical to know what one is doing in the markets. Hence, having the right knowledge is of utmost importance. There are predominantly 2 approaches – Fundamental analysis (FA) and Technical Analysis (TA). FA consists of reading balance sheets, P&L reports, financial ratios, cash flows, order inflows, sectoral / government news, etc. FA can be used by people form accounting background, C.A.s or MBAs with Finance specialization. FA is effective for long term investments – typically 3-5 years horizon or more. On the other hand, TA involves reading the chart and analyzing the pattern or other technical parameters. It does not require any prior academic background. I personally believe TA is much easy to learn and practice, as compared to FA. TA can be used for short term trading, as well as identifying stocks which can give you returns of 20% to 50% in the medium term. A lot of software engineers, IT professionals, doctors, lawyers, media professionals use technical analysis, to undertake trades which they can hold on for 2 weeks to 2 months, thereby making additional money apart from their salaries.
One should always invest the surplus funds which they can spare, after meeting all the monthly expenses. It is also important not to invest all / majority of the funds in a single stock, as it is against the laws of trading as well as investing. A lot of courses are available these days on FA and TA, which the doctors can enroll for. They can also opt for seeking professional advice, by paying the relevant fees.
CC.11 To young and budding professionals planning to pursue a career in Technical Analysis, what would be your advice to them? How rewarding and challenging is this profession. I am interested in know what specific skills does one need to have to do what people like you do.
AP: My advice to them would be to try and keep things simple. Making and following complicated charts is not the key to success in TA. I would advise them to learn TA from a professional teacher or institute, and not rely only on internet and Youtube, as the importance of a guide / coach or a teacher is very essential. A lot of my students tell me that what they have learnt in my workshops or webinars, was very different to what they had read or seen online. I will again give a reference to cricket – one cannot learn to play professional cricket just by watching videos and articles of Sachin Tendulkar or Shane Warne. A teacher will guide you on the nuances of trading, how to avoid getting into false moves, strategies to be applied, and a lot more.
I would advise young professional not to dream about professional trading, till the time they are consistently successful at making money in the markets. They can always focus on their existing profession, and use TA to generate additional income, at least for the initial few years. As far as skills are concerned, it would be practice, discipline and money management.
CC.12 How do you keep yourself abreast of the latest developments?
AP: I watch business news channels, read articles on financial websites / apps. Being a part of a few investment / trading groups on social media helps me to get updates of important events and happenings. Finally, the most important activity for me is analysing the charts.
CC.13 If you had the power to change some thing(s), what would they be?
AP: I would want to change human psychology for the good. Seeing the state of women in villages and rural India makes me sad. I would like to change the rigid and orthodox mindset of lesser educated beings, to a more accommodating and liberal mindset towards women. I would want to change (replace) the emotion of hate to that of Love, and wish for a peaceful blissful planet.
CC.14 Besides doing Technical Analysis and Training what are your personal interests?
AP: I love music, and sometimes play the guitar. I have a passion for bike riding and playing cricket. I write poetry and also perform stand-up comedy.
CC: That’s amazing for a person who deals with numbers and graphs.
CC.15 Where next for you after becoming the Head of Training?
AP: In future, I intend to give wings to my dream of starting a training academy. I also have a vision of setting up a non-profit charitable model, unheard of in India presently, but prevailing in Europe.
Asif this discussion has been a kind of revelation because I know nothing of it nor do our readers. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and experience. I am sure our readers will have greatly benefitted from your insights, some of which is completely new for most of us.
I thank you for sparing your valuable time and your knowledge and thoughts and I am sure this will have a lasting impact on the readers.
SARFARAZ LAKHANI
AP: In future, I intend to give wings to my dream of starting a training academy. I also have a vision of setting up a non-profit charitable model, unheard of in India presently, but prevailing in Europe.
Asif this discussion has been a kind of revelation because I know nothing of it nor do our readers. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and experience. I am sure our readers will have greatly benefitted from your insights, some of which is completely new for most of us.
I thank you for sparing your valuable time and your knowledge and thoughts and I am sure this will have a lasting impact on the readers.
SARFARAZ LAKHANI
CALIBRE CREATORS
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very interesting and informative thanks.
ReplyDeleteNice article.
ReplyDeleteMajority of readers must be common people looking for guidance. Also, a vast majority with money are vary of dabbling with equity market.
Advice to them should be:
1. Draw out your financial goals and allocate where all to invest.
2. Pl do enter the equity market for better returns.
3. Just as you go to a qualified doctor when you fall sick, seek advise of an expert, for advise on where to invest.
4. For beginners, SIP route is the safest since it will carry minimal risks.
Best wishes,
Very interesting, knowledge base on market and experience.
ReplyDeleteOne of the best Teacher
ReplyDeleteNice insights. God bless you both with success.
ReplyDelete