Life @ Marex
Paul Mafiamba
Paul describes his experience of life as a graduate at Marex.
Tell us a bit about your background:
I studied Economics with Accountancy at the University of East Anglia, followed by an MSc in Corporate Finance at King’s College London. I’ve always been drawn to the fast-moving nature of markets and the idea that you can take on real responsibility early in your career while seeing the impact of your decisions very quickly.
Before joining Marex, a key highlight of my journey was my charity work supporting vulnerable women and children in Cameroon. A lot of the work involved cold calling and direct outreach, which unexpectedly became my first introduction to sales. It pushed me out of my comfort zone and helped me develop the communication and resilience skills I rely on now.
What’s your role at Marex?
I’m a Graduate Sales Trainee on the Hedging Solutions team within the Energy Desk. We work with corporates to help them hedge their commodity price risk and gain stability in often volatile energy markets. My role sits at the intersection of client interaction, market understanding, and execution, which gives me exposure to both the commercial and analytical sides of Marex.
Describe a typical day in your role:
My day usually starts by catching up on market movements and macroeconomic developments that could influence our clients’ exposures. From there, I spend a lot of time executing and booking trades, speaking with traders, clients, and brokers, and supporting the flow of information across the desk.
A unique part of my role is writing market reports twice a week, which has helped me build a much deeper understanding of the macro factors that drive prices and investor sentiment in the energy market. Throughout the day, I’m constantly switching between market-focused tasks and client-facing conversations, meaning I must remain adaptable.
What is your favourite thing about your role?
My favourite part of the role is having the opportunity to learn from people who are genuinely passionate and knowledgeable about sales, trading, energy, and finance in general. Moreover, being trusted to execute trades with clients by myself, even in a limited capacity, has been a standout moment for me. It’s motivating to know that the work I’m doing directly contributes to the team and to our clients.
Additionally, being able to listen in on client meetings and hear first-hand how they think about their exposures and challenges has been incredibly valuable. And seeing our team develop tailored solutions to help them manage these exposures and risks is a rare and amazing opportunity.
