Top 11 Most Successful & Famous Stock Traders of All Time

If you want to learn about the most innovative trading techniques and trading strategies, then you need to learn from the most successful stock traders of all time. Yes, you can learn plenty of useful ideas from the success stories of famous stock traders. 

Although millions of traders entered the arena of stock trading, there aren’t many who are recognized despite achieving substantial success. However, there are a few who brightened this arena with the light of their trading techniques. They achieved remarkable success and therefore, offer stock traders so much to learn. 

Are you interested in knowing who are the most successful stock traders of all time? Who are those who established their recognition as the most successful and famous traders of all time? Let’s find out.

Most successful and famous traders of all time

1. Jesse Livermore

Undoubtedly, Jesse Livermore easily tops the list of the best stock traders of all time. He is among the pioneers of day trading and one of the most successful traders in the world. He made an astonishing fortune of $100 million in the 1929 market crash. Livermore is the trader who first determined that stock prices move in patterns that repeat from time to time. He also developed some unique tools, formulas, and equations to guide him in trading. How unfortunate was it that the life and death of such an iconic and famous stock trader were controversial. He made his fortune by 1930, he lost his fortune by 1934, and he eventually took his own life in 1940. However, Livermore’s legacy is still with stock traders and they are learning a lot from his trading techniques and ideas.

2. George Soros

George Soros, the man who broke the Bank of England, is also among the very successful stock traders. He is the chair of Soros Fund Management LLC which is the most iconic hedge fund in the industry. Soros made a $1 billion profit by short-selling $10 billion worth of pounds. His net worth in 2022 is reported as more than $8.6 billion. Soros’s success is not only confined to being among the most famous stock traders. He is also a philanthropist who spends lavishly on the well-being of humanity. So, we have a lot to learn from Soros’ unique trading style, level of risk tolerance, and money management. 

3. Paul Tudor Jones

Another big name on the list of the most successful stock traders is Paul Tudor Jones. He is among the famous stock traders who made millions in difficult market conditions. Yes, it is true because Tudor Jones made around $100 million when the stock market crashed in 1987. He is a smart trader who always starts off with a small trade to pursue from a very negligible standpoint until he makes sure. Tudor Jones also emphasizes catching tops and bottoms to make huge profits. He is also a hedge fund manager and founder of one of the world’s largest hedge fund companies named Tudor Investment Corporation. In short, Paul Tudor Jones is a huge figure whose shadow contains lots of useful trading ideas and concepts to learn.

4. Jim Rogers

Jim Rodgers is also among the world’s most successful stock traders. He is among the famous traders who are known for their intelligence, trading strategies, and brave trading moves. Rodgers made millions by his bullish trend anticipation of commodities during 1990. He currently runs Rodgers Holdings as a chair. Rodgers is also the co-founder, along with George Soros, of Quantum Fund. Moreover, he never feels pride in his success or economic predictions. On the contrary, Rodgers is proud of what he has taught to younger generations. “Swim your own races” is a golden quote of Rodgers for us to follow. He always listens to his instincts and he also advises us to do the same because listening to oneself is better than listening to others.

5. Ross Cameron

Ross Cameron is also among the most famous stock traders. He is a modern trader who focuses on the momentum of stocks priced below $20. His trading style, techniques, and strategies made millions for him. Cameron is typically a day trader who reportedly made more than $200,000 in 2016 alone. He is also a person who prefers to share his trading ideas with others to make money. For that reason, he founded Warrior Traders which is a chat room for active day traders to share trading ideas and learn from each other. 

6. William Delbert Gann

William Delbert Gann is another huge figure in the list of the most successful stock traders. Gann is among famous stock traders who are known for their unique trading techniques. For example, he used to base his market forecasting on ancient mathematics, geometry, and even astrology. Moreover, the Square of 9, Gann Fans, and Gann Angles are among Gann’s mysterious trading tools. He also authored some highly useful books for traders to learn how to trade successfully. 

7. Jim Simons

Jim Simons is among the world’s wealthiest people with a net worth of $28.6 billion in 2022. He is among the smartest investors the world ever witnessed. Simons is famous for creating his trading strategies by using mathematics and data analytics. He is also known as Quantum King who decided to make trades on the basis of quantitative analysis. Simons also manages the Medallion hedge fund. His trading ideas and skills empowered the hedge fund to make more than $100 billion and counting. In fact, he has top professionals such as mathematicians, data analysts, programmers, etc. to work with him at the hedge fund. 

8. Brett N. Steenbarger

Brett Steenbarger is another one of the most famous stock traders. He is not only a successful trader but also a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences. Steenbarger took a unique path to trade as he mastered his own psychology. He emphasizes that traders need to become their own coaches and psychologists to trade effectively. Steenbarger also emphasizes that psychological reasons are always behind failure or success in trading. Therefore, he stresses on traders to find out those psychological reasons for success in trading. Steenbarger also suggests taking trading exercises to overcome psychological barriers to success and effective trading. He wrote a number of very useful and praiseworthy books to learn about the best psychological approaches to trading. Simply put, his books and his ideas are the greatest assets for traders to realize their trading goals. 

9. David Tepper

David Tepper is another monumental figure on the list of the most successful stock traders of all time. He is also among the world’s wealthiest people with a net worth of more than $16.7 billion. His fortune is the courtesy of his trading style, techniques, and intelligence. Tepper started as a securities analyst, then as a financial analyst, and eventually founded his own hedge fund. He is the co-founder of Appaloosa Management. It is also among the world’s largest hedge funds. His confidence and his bravery are evident in his aggressive trading style. These are his best traits that also proved instrumental in the success of his hedge fund. To cut the long story short, Tepper is among the famous stock traders we need to learn from. 

10. Richard Dennis

Richard Dennis is another one of the most successful and famous stock traders. His success was based on his shrewd approach to trading. Dennis is an expert trader who understands financial markets in the best possible way. His intelligence to identify the odds is remarkable. That is why he accumulated a fortune of over $200 million in a timeframe of 10 years. He is famous for the Turtle Trading experiment along with his partner William Eckhardt. 

11. Steven Cohen

Steven Cohen is another big name on the list of the most famous stock traders. He is an American trader and investment fund manager. Cohen is also among traders who established powerful trading strategies and developed effective techniques. He emphasizes following trading strategies strictly. Cohen uses high-risk and high reward strategies to make money. Cohen established the SAC Capital hedge fund which became highly successful. However, it was closed by the Securities Exchange Commission in 2016 because of insider trading. Cohen, however, was never charged by the SEC. He established Point72 Asset Management, another hedge fund, in 2018 to take a fresh start. Cohen’s success is remarkable. His trading styles are ideas are innovative. That said, traders have a lot to learn from this legendary trader.