Staff Spotlight – Moody Sultan

 

 

In our newest Staff Spotlight feature, we’re excited to shine a spotlight on Moody Sultan, our Commodity Owner at Sparta! Join us as we unravel Moody’s journey, which began just 6 months ago, yet has already left an indelible mark on our team. Explore Moody’s insights, experiences, and the pivotal role he plays in driving actionable intelligence for traders.

CAN YOU EXPLAIN YOUR ROLE

Absolutely – I am a commodity owner for Core. Commodity owners are seen as subject matter experts in their space. Each commodity owner is tied to a vertical such as diesel, gasoline, naphtha, etc., whereas I do not sit under a product vertical. I see myself webbed between them all.

My role is incredibly diverse. Being part of Core means I’m involved in numerous projects. Our top priority is data—whether it’s ensuring accuracy, increasing update frequency, or expanding data sources. At Sparta, data is our gold mine. Currently, my main focus is sifting through the wealth of information we have to provide actionable intelligence to traders.

HOW DID YOU GET STARTED IN THE INDUSTRY?/CAN YOU GIVE ME A RUNDOWN OF YOUR CAREER PATH UP UNTIL THIS POINT?

Having graduated with honours in Actuarial & Financial studies from University College Dublin, right out of university I knew exactly what I did not want to do, and that was to continue pursuing my Actuarial studies. Although challenging in itself, I wanted a more exciting role in the financial markets. The markets are something that always fascinated me, especially watching the Wall Street type-esque movies growing up. I joined a prop trading firm in the heart of Dublin and spent almost 6 years there learning all types of paper trading from discretionary to algorithmic trading.

Those 6 years felt like 15; the pace was insane and the learning curve was steep, a sink or swim type of approach. Anything from fx, bonds, metals, softs to energy, I had exposure to. It really was an immense learning phase. My exposure to the oil market came about when I joined the only high-frequency trading desk, market-making Gasoil contracts. Excelling in this role meant I had to learn languages like KDB & Python early on so that I could query data and understand other players in the market to take advantage.

Following that, I moved to Geneva, Switzerland to take on more of a client-leading role in Commodities in a leading fintech. Spending almost 3 years there, visiting and getting to meet many commodity traders in Geneva, helping them achieve their trading needs, I was able to grow my network decently. I really enjoyed that role as I was speaking with the industry on a daily basis understanding different aspects of businesses while working. After some time, I wanted a new challenge and that’s how I came across Sparta, a new disruptive platform for oil traders.

WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE PART OF WORKING AT SPARTA?

I really enjoy working remotely; I love the flexibility. Just not having to commute is great, and perhaps this sounds cliché but also being part of the idea behind Sparta.

WHAT ARE YOU MOST PROUD OF IN YOUR CAREER SO FAR?

Across the globe, you could find workspaces that I built for commodity traders on their screens.

WHAT’S THE MOST INTERESTING PROJECT YOU’VE WORKED ON HERE AT SPARTA?

Intelligence dashboard. (It’s not released yet but a large work in progress).

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE OUR COMPANY CULTURE?

Open, young, and results focused.

WHAT DO YOU THINK SETS OUR COMPANY APART FROM OTHERS IN THE INDUSTRY

That we are providing real intelligence to traders rather than just pure market data.

WHAT PIECE OF ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO YOUR YOUNGER SELF?

Harness your time; spend more time doing projects that you love rather than what others love.

HOW HAS YOUR ROLE EVOLVED SINCE YOU’VE BEEN HERE?

Core, the team I work closely with, has many projects on their roadmap; we are entering a new phase in Sparta, AI/Analytics.

Sooner than later, all our curves will be visualised with any chart, and that will be the first stage of our analytics project called descriptive analytics. Once we pass that stage, we look to predictive analytics and then onto AI insights. Each stage will require a different skill set, which is how I see my role evolving.

WHAT’S THE MOST VALUABLE LESSON YOU HAVE LEARNT IN YOUR CAREER SO FAR? 

Getting your work done well but fast.

IF YOU HAD THREE WISHES, WHAT WOULD THEY BE?

Perhaps this is the most common answer; however, for my family and friends to be in good health. I’d love to travel the entire world with my family, I mean continent to continent. 

WHAT ARE YOUR GOALS FOR THE NEXT FEW MONTHS/YEARS?

Short-term goal is really becoming an expert on the physical oil market. [ My background is purely in paper markets.] Another goal of mine is to help build a best-in-class intelligence tool for Sparta.

WHAT’S THE LAST SONG YOU LISTENED TO?

The Thrill – Empire of the Sun / Wiz Khalifa.

WHAT, IF ANYTHING, ARE YOU CURRENTLY BINGE-WATCHING OR READING?

When I get the chance, I throw on “An Idiot Abroad”, one of the best shows Ricky Gervais has written other than the office. It’s like my comfort show. I got recommended “the hard things about hard things” and I was hooked, just spent 3 hours tucking in, was addicted. However, there are many books sat on my desk collecting dust which I’d love to have the time to read, but the next book I will read is called “We don’t know ourselves” by Fintan O’Toole; it’s based on Irish history.

WHAT’S ON THING PEOPLE DON’T KNOW ABOUT YOU THAT THEY WOULD BE SURPRISED TO FIND OUT

That I have a passion for videography and filmmaking.

WHAT’S ONE THING ON YOUR BUCKET LIST

Go to the Arctic and see the aurora borealis.

Moody Sultan our Commodity Owner here at Sparta and can be contacted at moody.sultan@spartacommodities.com.

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Sparta is a live, market intelligence and forecasting platform that enables oil traders, refiners, banks, hedge funds and wholesalers to have access to real-time and global actionable insights to capture market opportunities before others.

To find out how Sparta can allow you to make smarter trading decisions, faster, contact us for a demonstration at sales@spartacommodites.com