
Before TradeStation, William R. Cruz trained as a classical violinist. After an early loss in the markets, he and his brother built software that let traders test their ideas before putting money behind them.

A classical violinist helped build TradeStation around a practical idea: test the strategy before risking the money. Rafael (Ralph) L. Cruz brought the marketing, his brother brought the product focus, and a venture in a family home became an online brokerage.