EP 106: A Wall Street trader’s tale of spectacular excess w/ Turney Duff

Aaron Fifield Podcast 1 Comment

Turney Duff was a hedge fund trader on Wall Street who lead a truly excessive lifestyle. In 2013 he released a book about his experiences—titled, The Buy Side. And currently, Turney is a consultant on the Showtime TV series, Billions.

On this episode we cover everything, from what it was like to trade more than one billion dollars at Galleon Group—which was the hedge fund run by Raj Rajaratnam, currently serving an 11-year prison sentence for partaking in one of the largest insider trading rings in U.S. history.

Following on from this, we discuss Turney’s relationships with the sell-side and the extreme measures they’d take to win his business. Which leads into the shenanigans which took place after-hours—the cocktail of drugs, alcohol, sex, money and power.

We finish up with Turney’s fall from the top, some of the greatest realizations he’s come to, and the life he leads today… Enjoy!

Topics of discussion:

  • How Turney got his first job on Wall St, as a sales assistant at Morgan Stanley, before later joining Galleon Group (a hedge fund infamous for insider trading).
  • Turney shares a few of his most memorable trades, and how he got an edge from gathering information—which could be described as operating in a gray area.
  • Why the sell side would go to extreme measures to win the business of a billion-dollar fund manager, and Turney shares the full ‘wining and dining’ experience.
  • Turney talks about his first time on cocaine and developing an addiction, most memorable nights partying, and what life was like when the city lights came on.
  • What lead to Turney’s fall from the top, the times he spent in rehab, how he lost approximately $10-million of career earnings, and the pursuit of happiness.

Links and resources mentioned:

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