Trade Settlement Manager

Taylor Root; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 100,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

A financial services firm in Chicago is looking for a Settlement Manager at the AVP level. The role involves owning post-trade settlement processes across various global products while collaborating with trading and operational teams. Candidates should have 5-10 years of experience in trade settlements or trade operations, with a solid understanding of the trade lifecycle. This position offers hands-on ownership and opportunities for leadership within a dynamic environment.

Qualifications

• 5–10 years of experience in trade settlements or trade operations.
• At least 2 years at a senior/lead level.
• Strong understanding of the full trade lifecycle.

Responsibilities

• Own the end-to-end settlement process for listed and OTC products.
• Oversee daily position, cash, and collateral reconciliations.
• Monitor daily margin calls and liquidity movements.
• Maintain a strong control environment around trade processing.
• Identify operational risks and drive remediation initiatives.
• Develop and track KPIs around settlement performance.
• Serve as the primary contact for settlement matters.
• Lead and develop a settlements team.

Skills

Trade settlements knowledge

Middle office operations

Advanced Excel skills

SQL or scripting (Python, VBA)

Workflow streamlining

Job description

Location: Chicago, IL (on-site with some flexibility)

This Settlement Manager (AVP level) will sit in the middle of the action, owning post‑trade settlement across multiple global venues and products. It’s an opportunity to step into a visible, high‑impact role where you’ll work directly with traders, technologists, and senior operations leadership to keep the firm’s trading engine running smoothly.

Why This Role

• Direct exposure to multi‑asset, high‑volume trading and complex global markets.
• Hands‑on ownership of settlements, cash & collateral, and operational risk across the trade lifecycle.
• Ability to shape process & tooling, partnering closely with technology on automation and efficiency initiatives.

Responsibilities

• Own the end‑to‑end settlement process for listed and OTC products (e.g., futures, options, equities, FX, fixed income), ensuring accurate and timely clearing of all trades.
• Oversee daily position, cash, and collateral reconciliations across prime brokers, FCMs, clearinghouses, and custodians; investigate and resolve breaks and fails.
• Monitor daily margin calls, wire transfers, and liquidity movements, coordinating with Treasury and Finance as needed.
• Maintain a strong control environment around trade capture, confirmations, settlements, and cash movements; ensure alignment with firm policies, regulatory requirements, and exchange rules.
• Proactively identify operational risk in the post‑trade workflow and drive remediation initiatives (e.g., process redesign, automation, additional checks).
• Develop and track KPIs around settlement timeliness, fail rates, breaks, and operational incidents; provide regular reporting and recommendations to senior leadership.
• Serve as the primary contact for settlement matters across internal trading desks, risk, finance, technology, compliance, and external counterparties (brokers, FCMs, clearinghouses, banks).
• Lead and develop a small, high‑performing settlements team (or be the senior individual contributor stepping into a people‑leadership path), setting standards, mentoring junior staff, and fostering a culture of accountability and continuous improvement.
• Partner with developers and systems teams to optimize post‑trade workflows, including matching, confirmation, reconciliation, and exception management tools.
• Leverage data and automation (dashboards, scripting, reconciliation tools) to reduce manual touch points, enhance STP, and improve monitoring of positions, cash, and collateral in real time.

Requirements

• 5–10 years of experience in trade settlements, middle office, or trade operations at a trading firm, hedge fund, bank, or asset manager; at least 2+ years at a senior/lead level.
• Strong understanding of the full trade lifecycle (from trade capture through matching, confirmation, settlement, and reconciliation).
• Solid knowledge of listed derivatives and/or equities/options, with exposure to additional asset classes (FX, fixed income, swaps) a plus.
• Advanced Excel skills; experience with SQL or scripting (Python, VBA, etc.) is highly preferred for data analysis and process automation.
• Proven track record of streamlining workflows, implementing controls, and improving STP rates.
• Expectation of predominantly on‑site work, especially during onboarding and peak trading periods, with some flexibility once fully ramped.