Optiver

As our Quantitative Research Intern, you’ll spend your summer delving into complex, data-driven problems at one of the world’s leading tech-driven trading firms. Under the guidance and mentorship of industry experts, you’ll apply your critical mindset and strong technical skills to optimise the models that drive Optiver’s innovative trading strategies.

Through a mix of trading lectures, coursework and hands-on project experience, you’ll have deepened your understanding of the quantitative trading industry and mastered the practical skills needed to drive our trading success by the end of the 8-week internship. Plus, if you’ve excelled over the summer, you’ll receive an offer to return as a Graduate Quantitative Researcher.

What you’ll do:

Led by our in-house education team that consists of ex-traders and engineers, you will complete a curated series of lectures and coursework on trading fundamentals, covering topics such as options pricing, financial markets, trading strategies and cutting-edge technology.

Then, you will join one of our research teams and apply your recently acquired knowledge to real-world scenarios that contribute towards our trading success. Under the mentorship of senior researchers, you’ll ensure the accuracy of our core pricing models and work closely with traders to enhance various aspects of our trading strategies. Topics may include:

• Using statistical models and machine learning to develop trading algorithms that support and improve our existing models.
• Developing risk management and portfolio optimisation tools to improve our execution algorithm.
• Leveraging big data technologies to analyse high-frequency trading strategies, market microstructure, and financial instruments to identify trading opportunities.
• Building stochastic models to determine the fair value of financial derivatives.
• Combining quantitative analysis and high-performance implementation to ensure the efficiency and accuracy of pricing engines and libraries.
• Collaborating with our developers to test and implements enhancements to our trading systems, improving our ability to make successful trades.

Find your niche in research

During the internship, you will gain exposure to the various opportunities that are available in our research teams. Discover some of the teams below.

• Read Noah’s story to discover how he leverages large datasets to create underlying models that price our financial instruments in the Options Pricing team.

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 most complex problems in the financial markets.

In addition, you’ll receive:

• Competitive remuneration, including an attractive bonus structure and additional leave entitlements.
• The opportunity to work alongside best-in-class professionals.
• Training, mentorship and personal development opportunities.
• Daily breakfast, lunch and in-house barista.
• Gym membership, sports and leisure activities, plus weekly in-house chair massages.
• Regular social events, clubs and Friday afternoon drinks.

Who you are:

• Bachelor’s or Master’s university student, graduating during or after 2027.
• Majoring in a quantitative field.
• Inquisitive and critical thinker, who enjoys creating innovative, new solutions.
• Have a passion for quantitative problems and working in collaborative, dynamic environments.
• Strong knowledge of probability and statistics, experience in machine learning and time-series analysis is a big plus.
• Programming experience in any language (C, C++, Python, JAVA, etc.), ideally with a preference towards Python.
• Ability to carry a project on your own in a structured way within a short timeframe.
• Experience in working with large datasets.
• Able to clearly articulate in both verbal and written English.
• Excited to work alongside industry experts, with the motivation to continually upskill and improve yourself.

What you’ll get:

• The chance to work alongside diverse and intelligent peers in a rewarding environment.
• Competitive remuneration, including an attractive bonus structure and additional leave entitlements.
• Training, mentorship and personal development opportunities.
• Daily breakfast, lunch and snacks.
• Gym membership, sports and leisure activities, plus weekly in-house chair massages.
• Regular social events, clubs and Friday afternoon drinks.

Diversity statement

Optiver is committed to diversity and inclusion. We encourage applications from candidates from all backgrounds, and welcome requests for reasonable adjustments during the process to ensure that you can best demonstrate your abilities.

How to apply

Don’t miss your chance to accelerate your career and thrive on one of the most dynamic trading floors in mainland China. Applications are open until 8 October 2025.

We love how bilingual our teams are, but please remember to submit the below application materials in English:

• Resume
• Academic transcripts, including Bachelors, Masters and PhDs if any

Questions? Please email chinacareers@optiver.com.au.

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 when the next recruitment season begins.

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