7 Most Successful Traders in Asia

Most successful trading stories come from western countries, so what about Asia? From Rakesh Jhunjhunwala to Rayner Teo, here are some remarkable traders who have succeeded in the financial market.

Investing and trading have now become a trend for the majority of people throughout the world in order to make a substantial profit and income. In trading, some people fail and, in extreme cases, even go bankrupt. Still, a small percentage of people succeed at trading.

Even if some of these people just spent a small amount of money at the start to try to become a trader, there are specific traders in Asia who are considered successful, and we manage to compile the top 7:

• Rakesh Jhunjhunwala (India)
• Damani Radhakishan (India)
• Collin Seow (Singapore)
• Rayner Teo (Singapore)
• Dolly Khanna (India)
• Alex Yeo (Singapore)

Even their personal stories might serve as motivation for new traders. In this article, we will dig deeper into those 7 Asians who have achieved success in the financial market and hopefully, can serve as role models for newcomers.

List of Successful Traders from Asia

Here are the stories of 7 traders from Asia who can be your inspiration:

1. Rakesh Jhunjhunwala (India)

Since he was 11 years old, Rakesh Jhunjhunwala has aspired to be a trader. Radheshyamji Jhunjhunwala, his father, was his inspiration. Radheshyamji works as a tax clerk and is also a stock market investor.

Rakesh's father simply taught him to read the newspaper every day and showed him the news that caused the stock price to rise or fall, but he constantly turned down Rakesh's requests to invest in the stock market. Instead, Rakesh was constantly encouraged to pursue a bachelor's degree from a university. So he traveled to Mumbai to study Commerce at the Sydenham College of Commerce and Economics. After completing his education there, Rakesh pursued his studies at The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, earning a CA degree.

During those times, Rakesh continued to study stocks and finally made his first stock investment in 1985 with a capital of 5000 rupees. The Sensex, or Indian stock market index, was still at 150 in 1985.

When Rakesh bought Tata Tea shares for 42 rupees and sold them for 143 rupees, he made his first substantial profit. Following that, he began investing in a variety of businesses, including Bata, Sesa Goa, Apollo Hospitals, and Bharat Electronics. He made a profit of around 2 million to 2.5 million rupees between 1986 and 1989. His finest investment was in Titan, which he purchased for an average of 3 rupees and currently sells for over 1500 rupees.

Rakesh's success does not imply that he has never made a mistake. When stock prices plummeted by more than 30% in 2008, Rakesh believed the Indian economy will recover in the future.

According to Forbes magazine 2020, his efforts and perseverance landed him in the top 54 richest persons in India, with a total wealth of 4.6 billion USD. With his wife Rekha, he currently controls Rare Enterprises, an asset management firm. Aptech Limited and Hungama Digital Media Entertainment are also run by him. In addition, he serves on the boards of Prime Focus, Bilcare, Geojit Financial Services, and other companies.

2. Damani Radhakishan (India)

Radhakishan Damani is the owner of India's third-largest retail chain, DMart, and one of the country's ten wealthiest stock market investors. His net worth is $15.8 billion dollars.

Radhakishan was born into a Marwari family in India. Shivkishanji Damani, his father, was a stock market investor. Radhakishan began his career as a trader in the ball-bearing industry. He was initially uninterested in the stock market, but the untimely death of his father pushed him to venture into the market.

Radhakishan began learning to trade when he was 20 years old. Despite having no prior experience in the field, he wanted to learn by watching and understanding how the stock market works. At the age of 32, he began speculating and made his first stock market investment. Unfortunately, Radhakishan had had multiple failures later and even lost some of his initial wealth, so he decided to invest for the long run. He understood that speculating wouldn't get him far in the stock market. 

Between 1980 and 1990, Radhakishan had the opportunity to compete with Harshad, one of India's most successful stock market investors. Radhakishan, a Charter named Raju, and a young investor created a local group called Triple-R at the time. Harshad and Triple-R made their first investment in Apollo Tires, a company based in India. They quickly discovered Harshad had bid a high price for a tire company and began selling his shares.

Harshad was accused of enormous fraud in 1992, and the struggle between them continued for the next two years. Radhakishan eventually triumphed in the battle and rose to prominence in the stock market.

He is currently a shareholder in firms such as VST Industries, United Breweries, and Blue Dart Express Ltd, a logistics service provider. VST Industries, Sundaram Finance, India Cements, and Blue Dart are among his portfolio's best-performing equities.

3. Collin Seow (Singapore)

Collinseow.com was founded by Collin Seow, who is a trained Charted Portfolio Manager, Certified Financial Technician, and MENSA Singapore member. He is also a trading and investment instructor, and he mentors several people in the stock market using his finest approach. For more than 21 years, he has worked as a trader.

He didn't have high hopes for trading at first, but after a few years, he devised a system that involves using fundamental analysis to locate and purchase companies that have fallen below their true value.

He also discovered that the market is built on short-term trading and designed a rule-based trading method for buying and selling based on TA.

His counsel to newbies is to be aware that doing business in the stock market entails risks and the possibility of significant losses. As a result, they must learn to devise methods and switch from one to the next in order to achieve the required outcomes.

Collin Seow believes that in order to be a successful trader, they must not only be skilled in technique, but also in psychology, and they must do so at their own risk. He also believes that constant self-reflection will lead him to success pinnacle.

4. Rayner Teo (Singapore)

Rayner Teo is a well-known independent trader best known for his book Trading with Rayner. He is Singapore's most well-known trader with the most social media following. Rayner Teo was also named one of the top five most helpful traders on Twitter, and his site is read by over 23,000 people each month, mostly stock investors.

Teo uses a trend-following strategy, which means he buys when the market is rising and sells when it is falling. He was also notorious for abandoning trade when the tide was against him and riding the waves when the tide was on his side.

Teo's success can be ascribed to his meticulous attention to detail in his trading strategy. He also concentrates on risk management. He has a strong sense of self-discipline and is always on track to attain his goals. Persistence and the ability to reflect are two of his other secrets.

5. Dolly Khanna (India)

Dolly Khanna is a Madras graduate who is well-known for risking her fortune on the stock exchange. However, she is well-known as a stock market trader who consistently does well.

Rajeev Khanna, Dolly Khanna's husband, traded the majority of the shares Dolly Khanna purchased. This well-known trading partnership has been working since 1996. The pair invested in Nutralite Butter and Fem Bleach between 2003 and 2008.

Khanna lost 75% of his money when the market plummeted in 2008. However, a year later, they were able to reclaim his riches. Rain Industries Ltd., Butterfly Gandhimathi Appliances, and several other enterprises are currently part of their portfolio.

6. Alex Yeo (Singapore)

Alex Yeo is an independent trader who was one of the co-founders of Big Fat Purse, a financial technology and education company based in Singapore. The Federation of Technical Analysts has certified Yeo as a Certified Financial Technician (CFTE) (IFTA).

Yeo primarily trades futures options and has been doing so for three years. He sells options and collects the premium. It's comparable to an insurance firm that sells policies and collects premiums. The insurance provider simply keeps the premium if nothing happens.

He argues that in order to be successful in trading, one must have discipline and perseverance. Traders' failures, according to Yeo, are mostly attributable to their own egos.

7. Raamdeo Agrawal (India)

Agrawal is the co-founder and Managing Director of Motilal Oswal, a financial services firm based in Mumbai. Agrawal is a Chartered Accountant and the author of two books: The Art of Wealth Creation and Corporate Numbers Game.

He's also a well-known stock trader who knows how to pick the greatest stocks to buy. Agrawal now owns shares in two significant companies, one of which is controlled by Motilal Oswal and the other by Maharashtra Scooters, both of which are subsidiaries of Bajaj Holdings and Investments Limited (BHIL), which makes Hero Honda motorcycles.

By reading this article, we know that many famous and successful traders in Asia come from India and Singapore. Which brokers are popular in both countries? Let's get to know the top brokers in Singapore and India!