Trader Gary Bielfeldt

Gary Bielfeldt went down in history as one of the most successful government bond traders, as well as the largest philanthropist in the small town of Peoria.
It is worth noting that it was not the fact of success that made him famous, but precisely how he did it.

The future guru in the field of government bond trading was born in the small town of Peoria, Illinois.

Almost nothing is known about the trader’s childhood and early life. Young Gary's father fostered his love for stock trading by teaching him how to properly manage risks when playing poker.

In one of his interviews, Bielfeldt said that even as a child he beat all his peers and even adults at poker, which allowed him to make good money. His father taught him a simple approach to risk management: if the hand is bad and more than half the deck of cards is gone, you should immediately fold and lose your bet, rather than double it and rely on luck.

However, if the hand is great and you have an advantage at the very beginning, then you should make the most of the situation and, if possible, double down and cheat the players.

The lesson Bielfeldt received as a child transferred it to real trading on the stock market, when in unprofitable situations he immediately cut off risks, and in winning situations he could even use leverageto squeeze maximum profit out of the situation.

The Beginning of Gary Bielfeldt's Stock Market Career

Gary Bielfeldt began his stock exchange career with just one thousand dollars. Since his capital was too small, he traded only one contract for corn, and later, when capital began to increase, he used soybean and bean futures.

Gary's capital was so insignificant that even with incredible success it would not have allowed him to live on the money he earned. Therefore, in parallel with independent trading, he is actively involved in managing a small local brokerage company.

Bielfeldt had to forget about any diversification and focus on trading only one asset.

In 1965, Gary Bielfeldt, trading soybeans and corn with incredible efforts, was able to earn about 10 thousand dollars, but this sum was clearly not enough for a further jump up the career ladder.

Therefore, having collected fundamental data on the legume market, namely soybeans, and also involving his former teacher in agricultural economics, Gary decides to take an adventure.


Bielfeldt, relying on the professor’s assumption that soybean prices should rise, buys 20 contracts for almost his entire deposit, and enters the market with leverage to minimize profits.

According to Gary's memoirs, if the price had adjusted by 10 percent, he could have lost his entire deposit, but luck smiled on him and in just one trade, the deposit was more than doubled.

The soybean adventure allowed Gary Bielfeldt to reach a new level, which undoubtedly led to a huge increase in deposits and market capture.

Success and development.

So, by the beginning of the 1980s, trading volumes were already so large that Gary ran into restrictions established by the state on the maximum number of contracts. To continue his growth and development, Gary Bielfeldt is moving into the treasury bond futures market, where there were no such restrictions.

In 1984, he amassed a huge fortune by buying up government bonds at the very bottom, and the formed network of orders began to work on the principle of leverage, namely, it allowed him to build up and increase positions.

Gary Bielfeldt was very grateful to his city and loved it with all his heart. Therefore, he created a special fund and contributed about $30 million to its capital. This fund made it possible to implement many projects that residents dreamed of, including building a zoo and renovating kindergartens and infrastructure.

The Gary Bielfeldt Foundation was a non-profit organization, and anyone in the city could join him in charity.