Introduction

Day-trading is a common method investors use to make money. Some investors have it as a side hustle while others are unemployed and do it full time. For starters day trading is the act of buying or selling a stock, currency, or asset in return for a profit over the course of a couple minutes or hours. While there are other methods of trading, Takashi Kotegawa, also known as BNF or J-Com man, was able to turn $13,600 into $153 million over the course of 8 years day trading alone in his room making him the best day trader known.

Life Before Trading

Kotegawa was born in Japan and was living a normal life, not known for anything. He didn’t come from a wealthy family and wasn’t seeking to become a millionaire overnight. At one point, he was a broke college student, and he watched a segment of the news, which sparked his interest in the stock market. After this he decided to immerse himself into learning everything he could about the stock market, while working various jobs to build up the capital to start. At this time, there weren’t many books about the stock market, so he had to come up with his own theories with what was currently known. Soon, he was able to save up $16,000 to start trading.

Beginning Days of Trading

BNF began his trading career during a bear market on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in 2001, which was a period many people were avoiding. His first few trades were a mix of wins and losses but mostly losses which led to him focusing and backtesting more. He started making calculated trades, patiently building his account over time. His approach used careful analysis and emotional control, rather than chasing hot stocks or wild speculation. His strategy consisted of buying stocks that were at least 20-35% below their 25-day moving average, which usually resulted in a small rebound. He would close trades when the stock begins to narrow. This new strategy resulted in more wins than losses.

Becoming Successful

By the end of 2001 he was able to accumulate about $500,000 in his portfolio. Although his strategy was working, the bear market came to an end and his strategy only worked in bearish markets. As the market transitioned into bullish markets, he started identifying undervalued stocks before they caught up with the market trend. Using this strategy, he was able to achieve massive gains which increased his portfolio size to approximately $10 million by 2004. In 2005 BNF executed a large trade involving J-Com holdings. Due to an error by Mizuho Securities, 610,000 shares were offered at 1 yen each instead of one share at 610,000 yen, which was equivalent to $5,541 at the time. BNF managed to take advantage of this and started placing orders which led to him holding half of the stock. He held this position for one day and the price per share returned to a more reasonable price. This allowed for a $17 million profit in a single day. This trade gained him popularity and BNF was nicknamed “J-Com man.” Although he was making millions from trading, he didn’t spend much of his money. BNF traded because he enjoyed trading. His only major purchase was a top-floor apartment which was about $2.7 million. From 2006-2008 he continued his approach of short-term and swing trading Japanese equities with large size. In 2008, there was a financial crisis, but despite market chaos, BNF did not suffer major losses. Sources suggest he barely traded during the 2008 peak crisis months choosing safety over action. Following this financial crisis, he stopped appearing in interviews and stayed away from media coverage.

Conclusion

In conclusion, BNF started out as a broke college student and was able to transform a small capital of $13,600 to over $153 million dollars making him the best day trader currently known. While some traders take over 2 years to become profitable, BNF managed to become profitable in a couple months during a time period people were avoiding.

Works Cited:

• Mahesh. (2024, October 7). This is how the Japanese stock trader turned $13K into $153 million. Medium. https://medium.com/@MaheshGodara3009/this-is-how-the-japanese-stock-trader-turned-13k-into-153-million-b2002ffd4b2d
• Timothy Sykes. (n.d.). Takashi Kotegawa aka Japanese BNF day trader who turned $13,600 into $153 million. https://www.timothysykes.com/blog/the-day-trader-who-turned-13600-into-153-million/