Making derivatives legible, one position at a time.

Brown Derivatives Investment Group exists to demystify derivatives. Options, futures, and swaps are among the most powerful instruments in modern markets and among the least accessible to undergraduates — rarely taught in depth, rarely practiced, and rarely discussed outside of a trading floor. We think that gap is worth closing, and we think the way to close it is to trade.

Every member of BDIG works with real market data and a $138k simulated book. Positions are pitched by students, debated by the group, and sized and managed as a portfolio. Because the capital is simulated, we can be candid about what went wrong: a thesis that did not survive earnings, a spread that was mispriced going in, a position held a week too long. Those post-mortems teach more than any lecture, and our full trade archive stays public for exactly that reason.

Our weekly meetings are peer-led and open to everyone. No prior experience with derivatives is expected or required — only curiosity, and a willingness to defend an idea in front of a room. Anyone who shows up is a member.