Surprise as veteran trader resigns from Natwest Markets soon after joining

Michael Wheeler is no longer on the high yield desk at Natwest Markets in London. Insiders at the bank say he resigned on Monday.

Wheeler's exit is understood to have taken the Natwest Markets high yield team by surprise. The veteran trader only joined in Natwest in December 2018 and was expected to have a somewhat longer career at the bank. Clearly it was not to be.

Natwest declined to comment on Wheeler's exit. Insiders said the 51 year-old left for "personal reasons" and that he's going back to Texas, where he originated from before moving to London. Wheeler himself didn't respond to a request to clarify his motivation for leaving.

Wheeler's long career as a high yield trader included spells at both Morgan Stanley and Bank of America Merrill Lynch. He also spent some time as head of high yield trading at BNP Paribas in London before being let go in 2017.

Amidst suggestions that Wheeler was "old school," a friend of Wheeler ("Wheels") said his tenure as a high yield trader in an aggressive industry is impressive and that there simply comes a time when enough is enough. "He managed to stay in the market all this time and I guess he just decided it's not worth it any more. You're not going to make $10m at RBS."

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