There is a mixture of scepticism and intrigue in the room after Stephen Hoad has given his introductory talk about how he can show people the rules to make trading “a safe product”.

“It isn’t for me,” said Pierre Haincourt, a debt collector who lives in Oare, near Faversham. “Despite all the reassurance that everything can be done safely, people are people.”

“It’s a lot of money to commit for a course,” added Eric Tiv, a procurement specialist from Ashford. “It is also about finding the time to do it.

“But I have done a bit of trading in the past and what I like about this is it focuses less on the stock. It’s the way you ensure you keep control of your trades. I feel encouraged.”

Stephen Hoad launched his Canterbury-based business The Stop Hunter last year to show curious and eager budding traders how they can make money like the rabid stockbrokers on The Wolf of Wall Street.

Today he is preaching in the calmer surroundings of Eastwell Manor, near Ashford. It is far cry from the bustling trading rooms where he worked during a 20-year career with the likes of US investment bank Merrill Lynch and Koch Industries, the second largest private company in America.

“You know more about trading than you think,” he tells his audience of about a dozen. “People are programmed from birth and trading is about knowing the fundamentals of how people behave and translating that into strategy.”

Trading, according to Mr Hoad, is 80% psychological.

“It’s not about being greedy,” he said. “It’s about consistency. I can lose six or seven times in a row and still feel comfortable.

"I can lose six or seven times in a row and still feel comfortable..." - Stephen Hoad, The Stop Hunter

“The markets behave in repeatable patterns. Every year, for example, the price of lean hogs drops after the summer because of the end of the American barbecue season.

“In December, at some time, the value of the FTSE 100 will go up because of the retail affect of Christmas and traders lock in their bonus for the year. That is how the market behaves.”

The way traders take advantage of this is by spread betting on the financial markets, allowing them to make money whether prices go up or down by gambling on the direction prices will move.

Today, consumers can gain access to this kind of trading on their laptops and via apps on their smartphone.

While there are potentially huge gains, losses can quickly multiply too. The key to managing that risk, according to Mr Hoad, is the use of stops, which put a limit on the amount of losses and gains that can be made from each trade.

“Always have a stop on a trade,” said Mr Hoad, who lives in Canterbury. “It is key to risk management. In one direction it makes you money and in the other it saves you money.

“You know how much is the maximum you can lose before you start trading.”

“It’s a game which plays a lot with your head but understanding behavioural science can turn things to your advantage...” - Stephen Hoad, The Stop Hunter

Mr Hoad began teaching after leaving the city in 2014, when a number of his friends asked him to trade their money.

“That would do my head in,” he said, “so I said I would teach them how to do it. I started with a few people and then I realised I could make a business out of it.”

He still trades from his office in Canterbury and now lectures at London School of Economics, Queen Mary’s University and Canterbury Christ Church.

However, access to Mr Hoad’s experience does not come cheap. After his free introductory talk, a place on his two day courses costs £1,570.

He takes students through the decision-making process for trades and points out key features to look for in the graphs, including the much sought after “death cross”.

The mark signals the value of a particular stock is going to fall when its average price over 50 days and 200 days crosses over on the chart.

He said: “We are making trading a safe product. It is a lot less risky if you have a well-defined risk management plan that is executed consistently over a long period of time.

“It’s a game which plays a lot with your head but understanding behavioural science can turn things to your advantage.”