Lead Quantitative Engineer

WHO WE ARE

Optiver is a global market maker founded in Amsterdam, with offices in London, Chicago, Austin, New York, Sydney, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore, Taipei and Mumbai. Established in 1986, today we are a leading liquidity provider, with close to 2,000 employees in offices around the world, united in our commitment to improve the market through competitive pricing, execution and risk management. By providing liquidity on multiple exchanges across the world in various financial instruments we participate in the safeguarding of healthy and efficient markets. We provide liquidity to financial markets using our own capital, at our own risk, trading a wide range of products: listed derivatives, cash equities, ETFs, bonds and foreign currencies.

In Asia Pacific, Optiver was one of the first global market makers to establish a presence in the region, with the incorporation our Sydney office in 1996. Since then, we have expanded our footprint by establishing offices in Taipei (2005), Hong Kong (2007), Shanghai (2012) and Singapore (2021). The business in Mumbai is newly established and deemed to be an integral part of the APAC strategy, with an anticipation of significant growth over the coming years.

 
WHAT YOU’LL DO

We are looking for multiple experienced Quantitative Engineers to lead our strategy technology teams in India, focused on building trading strategies for Indian markets and beyond.

In this role you will work closely with traders and researchers, driving the design and delivery of quantitative trading systems. These systems will be deployed across Indian exchanges (NSE, BSE, MCX) and other APAC exchanges traded by Optiver. You will work at the intersection of trading and technology, shaping the architecture of Optiver’s expansion into systematic strategies.

This is a hands-on role. You will be expected to lead by example. As a technical lead you will mentor and guide other members of the team.

You won’t be doing this in isolation - you’ll collaborate closely with established teams in Sydney, while contributing to Optiver’s broader strategy across APAC.

Our engineers own problems end-to-end - from understanding trading challenges to designing, implementing, testing, and deploying solutions into live markets. Development is fast-paced and impactful, with features often reaching production within days.

Your responsibilities will include:

• Design and implement quantitative trading systems. This will include C++ auto-traders plus tooling for traders and researchers.

• Mentor a team of high-performance engineers.

• Partner with trading and research to improve trading systems.

• Drive a culture of engineers focused on the trading problem.

• Contribute to the strategy and vision for Optiver’s Asia Pacific systematic trading capability.

• Drive robustness and quality through strong engineering practices, including code reviews, testing, and production monitoring.

• Collaborate across global teams to share knowledge and influence broader system design.
  
  

WHO YOU ARE

We’re looking for an experienced quantitative engineer with a proven ability to successfully partner with traders and researchers on challenging trading problems. You should have:

• 8+ years of experience as a Quantitative Engineer working closely with traders and researchers.

• Experience making architectural decisions for quantitative trading systems.

• Proven ability to solve technically challenging problems, with a pragmatic and results-driven mindset.

• Experience applying machine learning techniques to trading.

• Strong stakeholder management skills, with the ability to collaborate effectively with trading, research, and other business teams.

• Experience leading projects as a technical owner, driving delivery and influencing design decisions.

If you have any of these, we’re even more excited to hear from you:

• Experience working on systematic strategies for options products within a similar trading firm.

• Experience directly leading a team.

 

WHAT YOU'LL GET

• A performance-based bonus structure unmatched anywhere in the industry. We combine our profits across desks, teams and offices into a global profit pool, fostering a truly collaborative environment.

• The chance to work alongside diverse and intelligent peers in a rewarding environment.

• Continuous learning, development and upskilling opportunities.

• Daily breakfast, lunch, and an in-house barista.

• Gym/Club membership, plus weekly massages.

• Corporate health insurance

• Uber business for daily commute

• Regular social events, including a company trip every two years.

 

As an intentionally flat organisation, we believe that great ideas and impact can come from everyone. We are passionate about empowering individuals and creating diverse teams that thrive. Every person at Optiver should feel included, valued and respected, because we believe our best work is done together.

Our commitment to diversity and inclusion is hardwired through every stage of our hiring process. We encourage applications from candidates from any and all backgrounds, and we welcome requests for reasonable adjustments during the process to ensure that you can best demonstrate your abilities.