← The Derivative25 Jun · 1 h 18 min
This City Trades Different: Yogi, the Floor, and Building RCM
<p>Former CME floor trader and RCM co-founder Bobby “Yogi” Schwartz joins Jeff to close out our Chicago month and walks through a wild career arc: from generational hog pit roots to dominating the Nasdaq futures pit during the dot-com bubble, then building prop firms, arbing minis vs. big contracts, and eventually stepping into Hollywood film finance before returning to launch RCM. </p><p>Bobby shares vivid floor stories: badges, hand signals, full-contact fights, and multi-million-dollar errors, while explaining how open outcry actually worked, why Chicago produced so many elite prop traders, and how the e‑mini revolution rewired the futures landscape. He breaks down building and backing 100+ traders, deploying early “gray box” tech, and structuring option and index arb trades that bridged futures, ETFs, and cash baskets.</p><p>The conversation then shifts to what RCM does today: multi-FCM clearing, outsourced trading, ETF and mutual fund infrastructure, ag and global trade finance, and navigating the explosion of new DCMs, prediction markets, and perps. Along the way, Bobby drops Hollywood war stories, Chicago steakhouse lore, and a candid look at where derivatives trading is headed next.</p><p><br></p><p><strong>Chapters:</strong></p><p><strong>00:00-01:12=Intro</strong></p><p><strong>01:13-10:06=From Yogi’s Jacket to a Generational Life on the CME Floor</strong></p><p><strong>10:07–20:20 = Inside the Nasdaq Pit: Dot‑Com Vol, E‑Mini Arbs, and Human Algos</strong></p><p><strong>20:21–31:36 = From Floor to Screens: Building Prop Firms and Hollywood Film Arbs</strong></p><p><strong>31:37–41:42 = Hollywood Trades: Indie Film, Oscar Winners, and Risk Like a Trader</strong></p><p><strong>41:43–58:06 = Building RCM: Clearing, Outsourced Trading, ETFs, Ag, and China</strong></p><p><strong>58:07–01:10:47 = Chicago War Stories: Pit Fights, Steakhouse Nights, and Trader Royalty</strong></p><p><strong>01:10:48-01:17:51 = Life After the Pit: Chicago Nights</strong></p><p><br></p><p>Check out previous Chicago episodes from this month:<br><a href="https://www.rcmalternatives.com/2026/06/how-chicago-became-the-worlds-options-vol-and-derivatives-capital-with-cboes-rob-hocking-mandy-xu/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">How Chicago Became the World’s Options, Vol, and Derivatives Capital (with Cboe’s Rob Hocking & Mandy Xu)</a></p><p><a href="https://www.rcmalternatives.com/2026/06/inside-2b-of-chicago-real-estate-tommy-choi-on-housing-migration-and-millennials/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">Inside $2B of Chicago Real Estate: Tommy Choi on Housing, Migration, and Millennials</a><br></p><p><br><a href="https://www.rcmalternatives.com/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">rcmalternatives.com</a></p><p>Don't forget to subscribe to<a href="https://www.rcmalternatives.com/the-derivative-podcast/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">The Derivative</a>, follow us on Twitter at<a href="https://twitter.com/rcmAlts" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">@rcmAlts</a> and<a href="https://info.rcmalternatives.com/get-our-blog-alternatives" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">sign-up for our blog digest</a>.</p><p>Disclaimer: This podcast is provided for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as legal, business, or tax advice. All opinions expressed by podcast participants are solely their own opinions and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of RCM Al
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