What is a war chest and lessons we can learn from Blackstone...In case you haven't heard, NYSE:BX is hogging over $100 billion of dry powder that is ready for deployment at the snap of a finger. Now, just because we cant get our hands on hundreds of billions of dollars doesn't mean that we shouldn't have a war chest of our own.
Why a war chest is a must have
Firstly, having dry powder ready for the next trading day could be the determining factor of a make or break trade. Specifically think back to when the current market downturn started. If I had to guess, many of you reading were far too exposed to the market and got scared from the "red wave" that shocked the market heatmaps. I would also like to bet that many of you sold positions for a loss to stop the bleeding and are now looking for a better entry. However, consider what would have happened if you had spare cash on your side to keep your positions alive.
Here is an example of over exposure.
And here's an example of keeping about a 20% war chest by your side...
I understand that it seems like a small amount of money, but trading is a game of pennies and a winning position of pennies is much better than a losing position of $140. This is the same tactic that firms like Blackstone use to protect large positions from poisonous events such as this recent downturn in the market. So in order to make money like a bank, we need to learn to think like a bank...
