Serena Lin, Head of Agency Mortgage Pass-Through Trading, Mizuho Americas, won Excellence in Trading – Fixed Income at Markets Media Group’s 2024 Women in Finance (U.S.) Awards.

What is your reaction to winning the Award?

I was honored to receive the award! Being in a room filled with so many successful women and hearing about their paths to achievement was truly a special experience. It takes a lot of hard work, and some days are tougher than others, but it is great to be recognized for my accomplishments along with so many other talented women in the industry.

Please tell us about your role and your daily responsibilities.

As the Head of Agency Mortgage Pass Through Trading, I oversee Mizuho’s market making business in Agency Mortgage products. With the firm’s rapid growth and continued expansion of the Fixed Income group, I also dedicate a significant portion of my time to supporting and building the business, which includes everything from growing client relationships to spearheading our quantitative and technology initiatives to make our business market leading.

What have been the main drivers of your success?

Two main drivers to my success have been building relationships and developing a team-oriented approach. Throughout my career, it’s been pivotal for me to build strong relationships, both within my teams and outside the firm. Clients want lifelong partners in this industry, and forming lasting trust through the years has been instrumental in my success. Second, I believe together is almost always better than separate, and that includes our trading teams, sales counterparts, credit, operations, technology partners, and many more. I believe so much more can be accomplished by working together.

What is your greatest professional achievement?

Growing the Agency MBS franchise at Mizuho to a top-tier business has been my greatest professional achievement. It took continuous effort and countless hours from my team and beyond to steadily grow the business to where it is now. Taking what I have learned from three other bulge brackets and successfully applying it at Mizuho has been a challenge well worth the effort.

How have you contributed towards diversity in the financial-services sector?

Two years ago, I put together the industry’s first Agency MBS Women’s Roundtable, which brought together over 10 of the most senior women in the industry. It would have been difficult to put together such a group when I first started in finance, and I am glad to see more female leadership in our industry. In 2025, we are looking forward to hosting an Agency MBS Women’s Roundtable at Mizuho.