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of its size. This allows the desk to build bespoke tools where off-the-shelf solutions fall short, particularly in order generation, an area Folke repeatedly identifies as critical, yet often overlooked.
“ We simply couldn’ t find a bestof-breed solution in the market, so we built it ourselves, right next to the traders who use it,” he explains.
That investment is increasingly paying dividends in AI. Rather than rushing to deploy new tools, the co-heads stress that the groundwork came first through years of cleaning, structuring and organising data.
As Folke explains:“ The unglamorous foundation came
first […] What’ s changed over the last year or two is that the investment is paying off: with that foundation in place, the AI tools we ' ve layered on top are now producing positive outcomes.
“ One of the most valuable: most of our traders can now test and vibe-code around their own ideas- the ideas they have precisely because they ' re experienced traders- without waiting on a developer. That has scaled our development capacity on the desk considerably.”
For Mølkjær, this mirrors the broader trajectory of automation in markets. Just as electronification has transformed, rather than replaced, the role of the trader, he tells The TRADE that the result of innovation is not fewer people, but more time spent solving higher-value problems.
“ Electronification hasn’ t eliminated traders, and AI hasn’ t eliminated developers. What both have done is let us move up the complexity curve and do more with the same team.”
He adds:“ It isn’ t that AI replaces traders; it’ s the gap that can open up between the traders who apply AI and those who don’ t. Traders won’ t be replaced by AI, but they may well be replaced by traders who use AI.”
Ensuring the entire desk remains on the right side of that divide is notably firmly front of mind at NAM.
Looking ahead further, Folke highlights the democratisation of data as a major focus, where advanced analytics become accessible through conversational tools rather than coding expertise alone.
He affirms that data and transaction cost analysis remain central to execution strategy as a informing
50 // TheTRADE // Q2 2026