I have not traded forex. I have worked with forex traders in NYC on non-trading matters. If your friend is getting a job with forex traders in a large established institution, get to be a better friend with him. He could make more money in a year than you will likely make in a lifetime and will have lots of really cool toys. If your friend is going to forex trade on his own, he is likely to get killed. Dead. The traders there that I knew thought I was retarded because they would stream out numbers too fast for me to keep up with or understand what they were saying. I have been a successful blackjack card counter, so I am not particularly bad with numbers. I thought they were retarded (at first) because a few of them didn’t understand grammar or spelling. But they understood enough to, in one case, get an 8 figure bonus. Yah, 8 figure. Guys in one room generating that income. One small room.
Truer words were never spoken. And if you don't believe him, just check out all the late-night infomercials promising Forex fortunes to housewives.