Nicolas Benassi

My routine is basically a combination of study, market, and networking. During the week, I divide my time between classes, readings on macroeconomics, finance and capital markets, plus daily market preparation and monitoring. I also participate in events, lectures and industry meetings because I believe learning doesn't happen just inside the classroom.

USP helps me a lot to develop critical thinking and understand the economic fundamentals behind market movements. FGV, where I already graduated, brought me a more applied view of management, finance and decision-making. But today, the market is still the greatest teacher. When there's money, risk and emotion involved, you learn lessons that no book can fully reproduce. Theory shows you the map. The market tests whether you really know how to drive.

I've been following the trading ecosystem for a few years, so Copa BTG Trader ended up appearing naturally through the community and my work at Nelogica.

I believe that the graduation period is the best time to expose yourself to real experiences. A lot of people wait until they finish college to start testing their knowledge. I prefer to do the opposite: study and validate my learning simultaneously.

Participating in a competition of this scale is an opportunity to measure your execution capacity under pressure, something that a test can barely evaluate.

Interestingly enough, the Copa winner, Danilo, was my client when I worked as a Trader advisor at Toro investimentos. My role as Trader advisor there was precisely to talk about risk management, so it was good to see an old friend bringing the prize home!

I believe both are important, but the process comes before the result.

A lot of people enter the market looking only at profit, with the promise, but profit is a consequence of a much larger construction. Trading requires study, emotional control, risk management, discipline and the ability to deal with mistakes. These skills take time to develop.

That's why I like that phrase from Adam Smith. The value isn't just in the financial result you achieve, but in the transformation that happens along the way. The market constantly exposes your weaknesses and forces you to evolve.

In the long run, results end up being a consequence of the quality of your process. If you build a solid process, the numbers tend to show up. The opposite rarely works.

Because the financial market is made of people.

The internet democratized access to information, but it doesn't completely replace in-person connections. When you attend events, talk with experienced professionals, fund managers, analysts and other traders, you get access to perspectives that rarely show up in ready-made content.

I like being close to the discussions that are happening in the sector, understanding trends and exchanging experiences with people who face similar challenges.

Many of the best professional and learning opportunities I've had came from events, corridor conversations and in-person meetings. Networking in the financial market continues to be an extremely valuable asset.

The main difference is that theory usually assumes decisions are rational. The real market doesn't work that way.

In college you learn models, hypotheses, and frameworks that are fundamental to understanding how the economy and financial assets work. But when you start trading, you realize that behavioral factors carry enormous weight.

The biggest lesson I learned from trading wasn't about indicators or charts. It was about risk management and emotional control. You can have the best analysis in the world, but if you don't know how to manage losses, control anxiety, or stick to your plan, you'll hardly achieve consistency.

University teaches you how the market should work. The market teaches you how people actually behave when there's money on the line. And understanding that difference might be one of the most important skills for anyone who wants to build a career in this sector.