Tom Hougaard: Best Loser Wins, Telegram and Track Record

Tom Hougaard says he posts his trades in real time, and he sells no trading course. That makes TraderTom unusual in trading education. Most of what he offers is free: Telegram channels, a YouTube channel and a library of notes. He is best known for his book Best Loser Wins.

We checked what the sources show and what they leave open. This review is based on tradertom.com, his disclaimer, YouTube data and book listings, retrieved on 5 November 2026. We did not audit his trades or his channels. We have no business relationship with him.

Tom Hougaard in 30 seconds

• Who: a Danish-born trader known as TraderTom, who says he trades his own account every day.
• Book: Best Loser Wins, published by Harriman House in August 2022, on the psychology of losing.
• Courses: he says he runs no workshops or trading courses. Personal mentoring is possible on request, with no published price.
• Channels: four free Telegram channels. One requires a Cloud Trader account with the broker TD365.
• Track record: the results page on his website shows an update date of 22 November 2021. Daily posts continue on Telegram, and we did not audit them.
• Disclaimer: he trades live and demonstration accounts, and the disclaimer does not say which account a given stream shows.

Who is Tom Hougaard?

Tom Hougaard is a Danish-born day trader who publishes his trades as TraderTom on Telegram and YouTube and wrote the book Best Loser Wins.

His biography comes from his publisher and from what he says himself. The Harriman House author note says he studied economics and finance in the UK and worked for JPMorgan Chase. It adds about ten years as chief market strategist at a CFD broker in London and own-account trading since 2009. We found no independent record that checks these details.

His website states the two degrees and says he trades every day. On his course page he says two degrees do not make anyone qualified to trade. The real test, he writes, is to trade, and he posts his entries and exits in Telegram as they happen.

Item	Details
Known as	TraderTom
Website	tradertom.com
YouTube	269,000 subscribers, 633 videos (5 November 2026)
Book	Best Loser Wins, Harriman House, August 2022, 264 pages
Paid offer	personal mentoring on request, no published price

Best Loser Wins: what the book argues

Best Loser Wins is a book on trading psychology and on how traders handle losing. The publisher’s page presents it as a look at mindset and at why normal thinking fails in trading. We rely on that description and on Hougaard’s own resources, not on a full reading for this review.

Judge the book as psychology, not as a strategy manual. The publisher’s focus is on behaviour, so check a sample before buying if you want entry rules. For other titles, see our guide to trading books.

The exact title is often misquoted. The correct form is Best Loser Wins, with the subtitle “Why Normal Thinking Never Wins the Trading Game”. The paperback has ISBN 9780857198228.

Why he sells no courses

Hougaard says plainly that he has decided not to run workshops and trading courses at this point in his life. His course page gives three reasons: daily trading demands his concentration, his Telegram channels teach more efficiently in his view, and his free resources already hold what he knows.

Personal mentoring exists, but he does not market it. He writes that he is not looking for business, does not want “tire kickers” and does not “come cheap”. We found no price, and the shop page only said “Coming Soon”. So there is no syllabus or course contract to compare, which our guide to trading courses would otherwise check.

The free Telegram channels and YouTube

His live trading page lists four free Telegram channels. They serve different needs, and the day trading channel is of little use if you cannot follow it during market hours. His homepage still describes only two channels, and so does his disclaimer, so the live trading page is the one to rely on.

Channel	What it is
Live Day Trading	active intraday channel with time-sensitive posts
Forex Swing Trading	much less active; the homepage says 3 to 5 trades a week
Resource Channel	his research and setups
Trade From Chart	free, but needs a Cloud Trader account with TD365.com

One channel depends on a named broker. The Trade From Chart group requires a Cloud Trader account with TD365. We found no statement on the tradertom.com pages we checked about any commercial relationship with that broker.

Check every channel against his own page. Hougaard keeps a scam warning about impersonators using his name or image on Facebook, Telegram, WhatsApp, Twitter and YouTube. His live trading page links to the YouTube channel @TraderTom.

What the track record shows, and what it does not

The results page his homepage promotes shows an update date of 22 November 2021. The homepage says his results are publicly available in Excel. The track record page promises monthly updates, but the update line and the listed months end in November 2021. It points readers to Telegram for daily updates.

Item, as stated on the page	Figure
Day Trading Channel, “from April until today”	£466,427
Swing Trading Channel	£94,200
FTSE, raw points	+729
DAX, raw points	+1,369.3
Dow, raw points	+2,632.30
Nasdaq, raw points	−301.2
FX, raw points	1,185

These are his own figures, and we did not audit them. The page says he was still auditing the history of his calls back to July 2018, and it does not name an outside auditor. Telegram timestamps let you check a post against the market price, but they do not by themselves show the account, size or fill behind it.

He does warn that raw points can mislead. In one July, he made 170 raw DAX points but lost 19.25 once adjusted for position size. That openness speaks for him. It also means the point totals above say little alone.

The disclaimer: live and demo accounts

His disclaimer says he trades live accounts with real funds and demonstration accounts for educational purposes. His reason is that he can show setups as they happen without the pressure of managing real money while recording. The disclaimer does not say how to tell which account type a recording shows.

So do not assume every live recording shows real money. The disclaimer adds that no representation of earnings is made, that the content is education and not investment advice, and that you act at your own risk. It also says he does not offer recommendations to copy.

Free resources worth a look

The resources section is the most useful part of the website for self-study. It includes a scalping presentation that the homepage describes as more than 300 pages, price action training data, notes from a talk on trading mindset and chapters from his book.

The library has no clear learning path. It works as a collection, not a course, and some pages are several years old. Beginners may find a sequence first in our guide to learning trading, then use this material for price action practice alongside our price action guide. Practice on a simulator before risking money.

Why do 95% of traders fail?

“Why do 95% of traders fail?” is a headline on his homepage, and no study is cited there. He lists three reasons: an unprepared mindset, ineffective tools and naive expectations of progress. These are his views, so treat the 95% figure as a headline, not as a measured result.

Strengths and limits

Strengths

• Cost: the Telegram channels, YouTube and most resources are free
• Timing: he says his entries and exits are posted in real time, with Telegram timestamps
• No sales funnel: we found no course, subscription or package for sale
• Candour: he explains why raw point counts can mislead

Limits

• Old results page: the website page stops in November 2021, and the Telegram posts since then were not audited by us
• Account type: demo and live accounts both exist, and the disclaimer does not say how to tell them apart
• Structure: no syllabus, feedback or clear learning path
• Broker link: one channel needs a TD365 account, with no stated commercial terms on the pages we checked
• Style: fast intraday posts are hard to follow alongside a job, and they are not recommendations to copy

Who is Tom Hougaard for?

He suits traders who already know the basics and want to watch someone work and read about trading psychology. The free material lets you test that at no cost. If you need a structured path with feedback, this is not it. Our trading education guide compares the other formats, and our day trading guide explains the risks of that style. For context: Kagels Trading also sells trading education.

Frequently asked questions about Tom Hougaard

Does Tom Hougaard sell a trading course?

No, his course page says he has decided not to run workshops or trading courses at this point in his life. He mentions personal mentoring on request, without a published price. His channels and resources are free.

Are the TraderTom Telegram channels free?

Yes, his live trading page says all four channels are free. The Trade From Chart group also needs a Cloud Trader account with TD365. Use only the links on his own site, because he warns about impersonators.

Is Tom Hougaard’s track record verified?

We did not find an independent audit on the pages we checked. The results page on his website shows his own figures, dated 22 November 2021. Telegram timestamps help with checking individual posts, but they do not prove account results.

Does Tom Hougaard trade real money?

His disclaimer says he trades both live accounts with real funds and demonstration accounts. The demo accounts are for educational purposes. The disclaimer does not explain how to tell which account a recording shows.

What is Best Loser Wins about?

Best Loser Wins is a trading psychology book about mindset and handling losses. Harriman House published it in August 2022. Check a sample if you want entry rules.