Software Engineer

Optiver US LLC; Greater London; On-site; GBP 60,000 - GBP 90,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading market making firm in London is seeking a Software Engineer to join their Novel Trading Opportunities team. You will design and develop software to enable trading in new products and markets, applying strong engineering skills and programming in C#, C++, and Python. The ideal candidate has experience in building trading systems and a passion for financial markets. The position offers a supportive environment and numerous employee benefits, including a performance-based bonus and generous vacation days.

Benefits

Performance-based bonus

27 paid vacation days

Daily meals

Private medical insurance

Pension scheme

Fitness membership

Training opportunities

Qualifications

• Strong understanding of computer science fundamentals.
• Proven ability to deliver scalable, high-quality clean code.
• Experience connecting proprietary trading systems to exchanges.

Responsibilities

• Design and build the software required to trade new products.
• Develop pricing systems and integrate into new markets.
• Work closely with multidisciplinary teams to solve trading opportunities.

Skills

C#

C++

C

Python

Test-driven design

Distributed systems

Derivatives trading

Job description

Optiver is looking for a Software Engineer to join our Novel Trading Opportunities team, who are responsible for conceptualising and bringing to life the solutions needed to achieve our ambitious business goals. Our engineers apply their thorough understanding of the low level technical challenges that we face as a market maker, to continue elevating and expanding our trading business in a fast, principled and risk-conscious manner. We’re looking for an entrepreneurial mindset and the ability to strategically identify the tools which are best placed and where time is best spent, to achieve the results needed for our business to continue performing at the highest possible level.

What you’ll do:

• You’ll work closely with the trading team, designing and building the software required to help us trade new products, in new markets, in new and innovative ways;
• This team is focused on how we can achieve our business objectives while weighing up time-to-market, technical complexity and technical debt. Examples of this include:
• Developing pricing systems and infrastructure to price new products
• Building the systems to integrate ourselves in a first class manner to new markets and market structures
• From the get go you’ll be getting stuck in with a close-knit multidisciplinary team, working out how to crack new trading opportunities from the technical angle;
• Given the varied nature of this team’s contributions and its London location, you’ll have the opportunity to work in a start-up dynamic while being well placed to lead global technical initiatives.

Who you are:

• Strong engineering instincts and a deep understanding of computer science fundamentals;
• Experience writing software in C#, C++, C and Python with a proven ability to deliver scalable, reliable, high-quality clean code;
• Excellence in distilling simplicity out of a complex domain;
• A passion for continuous improvement and test‑driven design plus innovative, big‑picture thinking grounded in real‑world pragmatism;
• Ability to operate autonomously as well as collaborate with Traders, Researchers, other technical teams and business operations counterparts to deliver on complex business initiatives;
• Experience connecting proprietary trading systems to trading venues and exchanges and the ability to build a trading system that covers the entire lifecycle of a trade;
• Ideally experienced in building OTC trading systems;
• A keen interest in derivatives and trading, ideally with previous experience in the hedge fund or market making industry.

Who we are:

At Optiver, our mission is to constantly improve the market by injecting liquidity, providing accurate pricing, increasing transparency and acting as a stabilizing force no matter the market conditions. With a focus on continuous improvement, we participate in the safeguarding of healthy and efficient markets for everyone who participates. As one of the largest market making institutions, we are a trusted partner of 70+ exchanges across the globe.

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. Motivated 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.

• A performance-based bonus structure, enabling all of our employees to benefit from our global profit pool.
• 27 paid vacation days plus all UK public holidays.
• Daily breakfast and lunch, along with support on commuting expenses.
• Private medical insurance, pension scheme, and ClassPass fitness membership.
• Training and continuous learning opportunities, including access to conferences and tech events.
• International transfer opportunities for global career growth.

How to apply:

Apply directly via the form below. If you have any questions feel free to contact our Recruitment team via our recruitment inquiry form. Please note, we cannot accept applications via email for data protection reasons. Kindly note that we do not require assistance from third-parties including agencies in the recruitment of this role.