STEM foundation: Bachelor’s degree or above in Computer Science, Engineering, Mathematics, Physics, or a related technical discipline; a combined finance background is advantageous
Experience: Typically 3–8 years in software or data engineering (level-dependent), ideally with exposure to trading, OMS, middle/post-trade, or latency-sensitive systems
Languages: Strong proficiency in one or more of Java (17+), Rust, C++, or Python, with a focus on code quality and operational reliability
Systems: Strong understanding of high-performance, low-latency distributed systems, multi-threaded/concurrent programming, and — where relevant — JVM internals and GC behavior
Connectivity & protocols: Hands-on experience with FIX 5.0+, WebSocket, HTTP/2, and REST APIs, plus network protocol and TCP/UDP optimization
Data & messaging: Strong SQL (MySQL, PostgreSQL — schema design and performance tuning); experience with Redis and Kafka
Infrastructure: Comfortable in Linux/Unix environments; familiarity with Docker, Kubernetes, CI/CD pipelines, and cloud platforms (AWS, AliCloud, GCP) and on-premise infrastructure
Markets: Understanding of market microstructure, order lifecycle, and core trading concepts such as PnL, margin, leverage, and market risk
Mindset: Strong analytical thinking, ownership, and attention to detail; able to work effectively under pressure in a fast-paced environment; a controls mindset around data quality and reproducibility
Communication: Excellent communication and collaboration skills across business and technical teams; fluency in English required, with Chinese/Mandarin a strong plus for global, cross-functional work
Passion: Genuine interest in crypto markets, blockchain, and the broader financial industry, and a drive to keep learning new technologies
Prior experience in proprietary trading, market making, quantitative research, or front-office technology at exchanges, banks, or investment institutions
Experience with execution algorithms (TWAP, VWAP, iceberg, sniper, smart order routing) and backtesting / strategy-simulation frameworks
Low-latency tooling and IPC: Aeron, Chronicle Queue, Disruptor, shared-memory messaging, Agrona Collections, Protocol Buffers, SBE
Frameworks and libraries such as Spring, Netty, and Vert.x
Modern data platforms (Spark/PySpark, Iceberg, ClickHouse, InfluxDB), workflow orchestration (Airflow, Celery), and ML tooling (MLflow, TensorFlow)
Strong understanding of DeFi, blockchain, smart contracts, and crypto exchange APIs; exposure to event-contract / prediction markets
Agentic programming fluency — hands-on use of AI coding tools (e.g., Claude Code, Codex) on real production work
Risk and compliance experience; professional certifications such as CFA or FRM