Performance Engineer HFT- Amsterdam - 120-140K + OTE

Supergrads; Amsterdam; On-site; EUR 90,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Supergrads is seeking a technically curious Performance Engineer to join a team focused on understanding and improving the performance of highly complex electronic trading environments.

Advanced professional experience with Python and Networks or Linux is an absolute must-have for this role. The role sits at the intersection of systems engineering, quantitative analysis, networking and experimental research, where you’ll investigate latency sources and develop practical improvements.

Qualifications

• Strong knowledge of computer architecture, networking and/or Linux.
• Experience applying reverse engineering or black-box analysis to complex systems.
• Analytical mindset with data-driven experimentation.
• Experience using Python for data analysis, modelling or system investigation.
• Understanding sophisticated networking environments and stacks.
• Independent, inquisitive problem-solver with ownership.
• Collaborative with cross-disciplinary teams in engineering and trading.

Responsibilities

• Investigating complex systems through black-box analysis and experiments.
• Data-driven research on large datasets to uncover patterns.
• Performance optimization across connectivity and trading infrastructure.
• Build and test lightweight prototypes and proofs-of-concept.
• Collaborate with traders, software engineers, hardware and infra teams.
• Analyze network behavior with large datasets and statistical methods.
• Own investigations from question to recommendation.

Skills

Python

Reverse engineering

Black-box analysis

Networking

Linux

Computer architecture

Data analysis

Job description

My client is looking for a technically curious Performance Engineer to join a team focused on understanding and improving the performance of highly complex electronic trading environments.

Advanced professional experience with Python and Networks or Linux is a absolute must-have for this role.

The role sits at the intersection of systems engineering, quantitative analysis, networking and experimental research. You’ll investigate how trading and exchange infrastructure behaves in real-world conditions, identify sources of latency and inefficiency, and develop practical solutions that can deliver a measurable performance advantage.

This is an opportunity for someone who enjoys getting beneath the surface of complex technology, forming hypotheses, testing them with data and experimentation, and turning those findings into tangible improvements.

What you’ll be doing;

• Investigating complex systems: Use black-box analysis, reverse-engineering techniques and structured experimentation to understand how external and internal systems behave and where performance can be improved.
• Data-driven research: Work with large volumes of data to uncover patterns, investigate unexpected behavior and develop a deeper understanding of exchange and network technology.
• Performance optimization: Identify latency and efficiency improvements across the technology stack, from connectivity and networking through to trading infrastructure.
• Building and testing ideas: Develop lightweight prototypes and proof-of-concepts to test new approaches, technologies and optimization techniques before moving them towards implementation.
• Working across disciplines: Partner with traders, software engineers, hardware specialists and infrastructure teams to translate technical findings into practical changes.
• Analyzing network behavior: Work with very large network datasets, developing statistical analyses and experiments to validate theories and explain real-world system behavior.
• Independent problem solving: Take ownership of investigations from initial question through to analysis, experimentation and recommendation, with the freedom to explore unconventional approaches.

What they are looking for;

• Strong knowledge of computer architecture, networking and/or Linux, with solid expertise in at least two of these areas.
• Experience applying reverse engineering or black-box analysis to complex technical systems.
• A strong analytical mindset, with an interest in using data and experimentation to answer difficult technical questions.
• Experience using Python for data analysis, modelling or system investigation.
• An understanding of sophisticated networking environments and networking stacks.
• A naturally investigative approach — someone who enjoys asking why something behaves the way it does and digging until they find the answer.
• The ability to work independently, take ownership and make progress with limited day-to-day direction.
• A collaborative approach and the confidence to work with specialists across engineering, infrastructure and trading.
• A genuine interest in performance, optimization and finding those small technical advantages that can make a significant difference.

The opportunity;

You’ll be working on some of the most technically demanding performance challenges in electronic trading, where microseconds matter and conventional approaches don’t always provide the answers.

My client is looking for people who combine strong technical fundamentals with curiosity, creativity and a willingness to experiment. If you enjoy solving problems that don’t have an obvious solution and using evidence to uncover what is really happening inside complex systems, this could be an excellent opportunity.