Wes Nolte trades with what he calls a \"diverse, risk-balanced, and bodacious\" approach. A 30-year-old from South Africa who works as chief technology officer in London, he ranks among eToro's most-cop
Wes Nolte trades with what he calls a "diverse, risk-balanced, and bodacious" approach. A 30-year-old from South Africa who works as chief technology officer in London, he ranks among eToro's most-copied Popular Investors.
His portfolio spans stocks—concentrating on U.S. technology companies—alongside commodities, currencies, and cryptocurrencies. Crypto assets hold particular appeal. "There is a good chance they will flatten the hierarchies that our society and culture, and so on, are built upon," Nolte says. "They are by their nature networks of peers, and could easily change our capitalist society, significantly shifting power from the few to the many."
Nolte signed up for eToro in March 2015. He brought 17 years of trading experience with him, including buying and mining cryptocurrencies since 2013. Less than two years into using the platform, in January 2017, he joined the Popular Investor programme, a scheme that lets top traders build their own financial operation and collect a 2 percent management fee.
The platform drew him for multiple reasons. "I was curious about how a social network built around trading might work; because of the ease and speed of trading; the great user interface; the fact that it's secure; plus the knowledge I can draw from and give to the community," Nolte explains. "Also I was interested in the PI programme, and how it enables top traders to earn a second income. On eToro I learnt about importance of diversifying."
Becoming a PI wasn't his plan. He'd used eToro for more than a year with no intention of joining the programme—he'd misunderstood how it functioned. Instead, he focused on refining his trades, generating returns above 200 percent. Dozens of users started copying his approach through CopyTrader each hour. An eToro account manager called, offering him a chance to join the PI programme with a signup bonus instead of a cost as he'd assumed. "Who the hell would turn that down?" he says.
Since becoming a PI, his $13,000 stake has grown to $33,000. His copied trades have generated over $3 million in profit for his followers. He targets $1 million per year for himself and wants his copiers to average $10 million per year.
Success on eToro demands good communication with those copying his trades and persistence, Nolte argues. He wakes at 6 a.m. to study markets and publishes news digests and updates throughout the day. His account has attracted 70,000 followers.
"I've got grit, and am a voracious reader," he says. "I've also learnt to be patient and park emotions – most of the time. Grit enables me to stick it out in tough times, especially as I have 70,000 followers and when things aren't going well they'll let me know. I love economics and studies of human behaviour, and read a lot every day, so I'm able to build a pretty good picture of the market on an hourly, daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly basis."
For traders new to eToro targeting strong returns and PI status, Nolte offers this parting thought: "Be patient; trading is the hardest skill to learn. You must learn to love the red, because it presents an opportunity. If you become a PI, stick with it. Sometimes it feels as though you're posting messages into a void but this is how everyone starts off. Have fun, make money and the rest will come. Finally, don't take things too seriously. No one gets out of life alive."
