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Meaning & use

trading desk

noun·Advancedfinance

Last updated

UK/ˈtreɪdɪŋ desk/
US/ˈtreɪdɪŋ desk/

Meanings

  1. nouncountablefinance

    The department or room in a bank or investment firm where staff buy and sell shares, bonds, currencies and other financial products.

    Grammar: Can be a place or a team: the trading desk is busy.

    Patterns

    • work on a trading desk
    • a trading desk at a bank

    She started her career on a trading desk at a large bank.

    The trading desk was noisy when the markets opened.

    News of the merger sent the trading desk into action.

  2. nouncountablefinance

    The group of traders in a firm who handle orders for a particular market or product.

    Grammar: Often with a modifier: the bond trading desk.

    Patterns

    • the bond trading desk
    • the currency trading desk

    The bond trading desk reported strong profits this quarter.

    He moved to the currency trading desk after two years in sales.

    A new head was appointed to the equities trading desk.

Word forms

pluraltrading desks

Common combinations

work on a trading desk
He works on a trading desk at an investment bank.
head of the trading desk
The head of the trading desk resigned last week.
bond trading desk
The bond trading desk made large gains in March.
equity trading desk
The firm hired new staff for its equity trading desk.
trading desk losses
Trading desk losses hurt the bank's earnings.

Synonyms and how they differ

dealing room
This is a British term for the same room where trading takes place.
trading floor
This usually means the large open area with many desks, while a trading desk can be a single team within it.
trading team
This stresses the people rather than the place, whereas trading desk can mean both.
brokerage
This is a firm that handles clients' orders, not a department inside a firm.

Word family

trader noun
a person who buys and sells financial products
trade verb
to buy and sell
trading noun
the buying and selling of goods or securities
desk noun
a table for working

Commonly confused: trading desk or trading floor?

trading desk vs trading floor

The trading floor is the large room or exchange hall where many desks sit. A trading desk is one team or station for a specific market.

Practice

A bank employee who buys and sells government bonds all day most likely works on a ___.

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