As our Graduate Quantitative Trader, you’ll develop cutting-edge strategies that directly impact and improve the global financial markets. You’ll manage a trading book as part of a team of expert traders and work alongside researchers and engineers to design, develop and enhance trading strategies, fully immersing in the world of market making.
If you own superior problem-solving skills and have a drive to excel, you are the ideal candidate for this role. Join us and be part of a dynamic team where you can make a meaningful impact.
What you’ll do
Your onboarding and training:
Kickstart your training in the Optiver Academy, our global training program in Amsterdam. The comprehensive training program will equip you with the knowledge needed to make an impact, the moment you join your trading desk. You learn the intricacies of option theory and apply your knowledge in a simulated trading environment, preparing you to hit the trading floor with confidence by the end of the 4-week program. We believe hands-on experience is the best way to learn, and that is exactly what we provide.
Your responsibilities:
From your first day on the trading floor, you’ll have the autonomy and responsibility to make decisions that create an immediate impact. Every day will present you with new and interesting challenges to solve, and it’s up to you and your team to drive our success through Optiver’s market leading technology-stack. You’ll be:
From your first day on the trading floor, you’ll have the autonomy and responsibility to make decisions that create an immediate impact. Every day will present you with new and interesting challenges to solve, and it’s up to you and your team to drive our success through Optiver’s market leading technology-stack. You’ll be:
- Trading, while constantly looking for creative quantitative solutions to real world events ahead of the competition.
- Developing robust pricing models and algorithms to offer the best price on the products you trade.
- Building tools, conducting analysis and leading projects that take your team’s trading strategies to the next level.
- Working collectively with our talented team of traders, engineers and researchers, to solve complex problems and remain at the forefront of the industry.
- Seeking continuous improvement in everything you do.
Find your niche in trading
We offer a range of opportunities in our Trading team. In the application, select the role that appeals to you the most, and we'll work with you to ensure the role is most suitable for you. Below are examples of the different roles available.
- Options Market Maker
As an Options Trader, during market hours, you'll be making quick, yet sharp, trading decisions, based on the data available. You love puzzles, predictions and have a flair for numbers. You’re driven to understand the why, but you’re also comfortable with making decisions under uncertainty. Outside of market hours, you'll work on projects that'll further set you up for success during trading hours.
- Delta 1 Trader
As a D1 trader, you’ll be in charge of running and constantly improving Optiver’s automated trading strategies. Whether it’s conducting a micro-analysis on part of the trading stack, or searching for new, novel trading signals in large, noisy data sets, you’ll be using your strong quantitative skills to continually solve trading problems which don’t have textbook solutions. You will collaborate closely with researchers and developers to trade, using Optiver’s cutting-edge statistical models and machine learning algorithms.
What you’ll get
You’ll join a culture of collaboration and excellence, where you’ll be surrounded by curious thinkers and creative problem solvers. Driven by a passion for continuous improvement, you’ll thrive in a supportive, high-performing environment alongside talented colleagues, working collectively to tackle the toughest problems in the financial markets.
In addition, you’ll receive:
You’ll join a culture of collaboration and excellence, where you’ll be surrounded by curious thinkers and creative problem solvers. Driven by a passion for continuous improvement, you’ll thrive in a supportive, high-performing environment alongside talented colleagues, working collectively to tackle the toughest problems in the financial markets.
In addition, you’ll receive:
- 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 opportunity to work alongside best-in-class professionals from over 40 different countries.
- Ownership over initiatives that directly solve business problems.
- Corporate health insurance
- Training, mentorship and personal development opportunities
- Weekly in-house chair massages
- Daily breakfast and lunch
- Regular social events including an annual company trip
- A work-from-home allowance and support
Who you are
- Penultimate or pre-penultimate university student, with an expected graduation date of June or December 2024 or June 2025
- Lateral thinker, with a passion for quantitative problems and working in collaborative, dynamic environments
- Holds superior quantitative and logical reasoning skills.
- Interested in strategic games and/or competitive activities.
- Experience with programming or scripting in Python a plus.
- May have an interest in trading or financial markets.
- We encourage Singapore nationals to apply
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.
*We accept one application per role per year. If you have previously applied to this position during this season and have been unsuccessful, you can re-apply once the next recruitment season begins in 2025
Optiver
1900 employees Website
At Optiver, our mission is to improve the market by injecting liquidity, providing accurate pricing, increasing transparency and acting as a stabilising force no matter the market conditions. With a focus on continuous improvement, we play an active role in the safeguarding of healthy and efficient markets for all participants. We tackle the toughest problems, challenge the status quo and always aim for excellence. As one of the largest market making institutions, we are a trusted partner on 70+ exchanges across the globe.
Our Amsterdam office is where it all began. Since our founding in 1986, Optiver’s Amsterdam office has developed into one of the most dynamic and exciting trading floors in Europe. Our culture reflects the Dutch capital city’s progressive, innovative and inclusive nature. With its unique spirit, Amsterdam is the ideal hub for our teams to trade a wide range of products, from listed derivatives to cash equities, ETFs, bonds and foreign exchange.