TrendUp offers rigorous, industry-aligned training and certification programs for the next generation of investors, traders, and analysts. Founded in 2016 by a group of hedge fund professionals, TrendUp began with a shared frustration: too many smart, ambitious people were being overlooked by the finance industry, and too few training programs were preparing them for what the job actually demands.
We started small, running in-person workshops that focused on real-world strategy, derivatives, and market psychology. What we saw was clear: when talented individuals are given the right tools, they perform. And when firms gain early access to that kind of talent, hiring becomes smarter and faster.
Today, TrendUp is a global education and talent platform serving both individuals and institutions. Our programs combine structured learning, personalized mentorship, and real-time trading simulations with professional credentials that carry weight in the industry.
We focus on two core audiences:
Ambitious individuals seeking to break into the buy-side, advance their Finance career, or level up their market skills. Our selective programs prepare participants in portfolio construction, derivatives, and strategy. Graduates earn certifications such as the Certified Futures and Options Analyst (CFOA) and may be invited to join our Specialization and Recruitment Program (SRP), which connects them with top-tier opportunities.
Family offices, funds, and institutions looking to strengthen their teams. We offer tailored training in complex instruments, market strategy, and behavioral finance. Our investor personality tools are also used to improve hiring, development, and internal decision-making.
Our partner firms benefit from early access to a sharp, vetted talent pool. Working with TrendUp helps them cut hiring costs, reduce ramp-up time, and identify future top performers before the rest of the market sees them. It’s a model that aligns education, performance, and opportunity.
Everything we do is grounded in our original vision: to close the gap between academic finance and professional investing, and to make real edge accessible to those who are ready to earn it.
Alex Liberfield, CEO
Alex co-founded a hedge fund while still in college at Penn, which eventually grew enough for him to effectively retire in his late 20s. He has then gone on to build and invest in several global businesses in Finance, Real Estate and Education. He currently serves as TrendUp’s CEO and Academic Director, and is in charge of the program’s content and development. Along with other investment fund professionals, he is also the instructor in some of the program’s courses.
Max Heppleston, Executive Advisor
Max is the Managing Partner of the Alternative Asset Management search firm H-Squared. With his expertise in the field, he acts as a TrendUp advisor and helps the program’s participants navigate the job hunting phase.
James Clark, Senior Advisor
James is TrendUp Finance’s chief senior advisor. With over 30 years experience in buy-side finance, both in investment funds and private equity, James helps the academic team curate the program’s content so it’s always adapted to the market’s ever-changing needs.
Brian Lantier, Senior Advisor
Brian is TrendUp’s Research and Markets senior advisor. With over 25 years experience in conducting equity research and trading for investment banks, hedge funds and venture capital firms, Brian helps the program participants understand the way the sell-side and buy-side conduct research as well as how the market interprets different economic data, geopolitical events and news.
Manuel altamira de guzman, senior relations executive
Manuel brings extensive experience cultivating relationships with family offices, private investors, and financial institutions. At TrendUp, he leads our business development efforts, forging strategic partnerships that strengthen our global footprint and ensure our programs remain closely aligned with industry needs. His deep network and understanding of investor priorities help connect TrendUp participants with influential stakeholders across the finance sector.
Dr. Anna Olson, Hedge Fund Performance Coach
Anna brings her experience as a psychologist and performance coach in different investment funds in both New York and Connecticut. She helps assess our top participants and produces a personality report with tailored advice with regards to career paths, as well as an analysis of the candidate’s strengths and weaknesses in buy-side roles. She’s also in charge of the Investor Personality Index (IPI) assessments.
Laia Bogaarts, HR Consultant
Laia brings her valuable know-how as an HR recruiter and consultant in the Finance and Tech sectors. She is experienced in identifying top talent across the globe, working for clients in Europe, North America and Asia-Pacific. She works with TrendUp’s top performers to prepare them for their recruitment rounds, joins in during mock interviews and shares her feedback and insights.
Rick Lohner, Data Analyst
Rick combines his experience in investment fund analyst roles with his passion for data analytics to keep track of our participants’ performance throughout the program. At the end of L3, he produces a report highlighting the candidate’s performance in different key aspects as well as their main strengths and weaknesses. This is then used to decide which participants are offered further opportunities.
Julia Pilka, Project Manager
Jacob Graf, Operations Analyst
Jacob leverages his knowledge in Business operations and strategy to help TrendUp run smoothly and meet its operational goals. He handles the company’s relations with partners in the Investment Finance industry and other key stakeholders. He is also in charge of designing and executing corporate outreach strategies.
Jacob Rhodes, Operations Analyst
Valtteri Salomaki, director of marketing
Valtteri is an MBA graduate (Information Systems & Marketing Strategy) from the University of California, Riverside, and the co-founder of Free Logic Media LLC and EDGE Sound Research Inc. He is experienced in strategy, marketing, & data analytics working at ESRI, and currently focuses his time building early-stage startup ventures.
Heidi Chen, digital strategist
Heidi graduated from the University of California, Riverside, with a Bachelor’s degree in Business, Information Systems. On top of her 3+ years of experience in marketing, user experience, and web development, she also brings international perspectives and experiences from her hometown, Singapore/South-East Asia.
Luis Tun, university of southern california
Luis is a Senior at USC studying Political Science. He’s a first-generation Latino student with interests in social entrepreneurship, social impact, business management, and finance. He aspires to create a non-profit organization that assists students of color to reach higher education. He’s an incoming summer analyst at Goldman Sachs.
Ryan Kuriakose, university of california – San diego
Ryan is a Junior pursuing his Bachelor’s degree in Economics and Mathematics at the University of California, San Diego. As the VP Finance of both Delta Sigma Pi and the Social Entrepreneurship Association, Ryan is an objective and unique thinker, constantly on the lookout for emerging opportunities within the finance industry.
Yong Hao, New York university
Yong Hao is a Junior at NYU studying Economics and Business Studies. Driven by his passion for social development issues, he is involved with numerous non-profit organizations and is always in search of tangible solutions. Yong’s goal is to empower students to make positive contributions to the global community.
Kevin Zhang, Boston University
Kevin is a Junior at Boston University pursuing a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration. He is incredibly interested in social impact related to business and is always looking to learn and grow as an individual. At BU, he is a peer advisor and a brother in Delta Sigma Pi.
We seek to create an environment of like-minded individuals whose diverse backgrounds and thought patterns foster a community that inspires our members to grow, share, and succeed.
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