Quantitative Trader, Futures

Quidax; Cape Town; Remote; ZAR 800,000 - 1,200,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading cryptocurrency firm in Cape Town is seeking an experienced Quantitative Trader for their Futures Product. You will design and implement trading strategies, manage risk, and build analytics tools to drive profitability in a dynamic environment. Ideal candidates have a strong quantitative finance background and expertise in Python and SQL. Competitive salary, unlimited paid time off, and remote work opportunities are provided.

Benefits

Unlimited paid time off

Annual performance reviews

Personal development fund

Qualifications

• 3–6+ years in quantitative finance/trading focused on derivatives.
• Deep understanding of futures and perpetual swap mechanics.
• Proven experience in VAR, CVAR, and drawdown analysis.

Responsibilities

• Design, test, and maintain pricing for futures.
• Develop and maintain real-time margin risk alerts.
• Deploy and manage market-making strategies.

Skills

Quantitative analysis

Python

SQL

Market risk modeling

Backtesting

Education

Bachelor's degree in Finance or related field

Tools

APIs

Job description

About Quidax

Quidax is where crypto meets limitless possibilities. We’re making digital asset access effortless for individuals, businesses, and fintechs in Africa. Our goal? Providing real value for our customers while driving the future of Finance.

About the Role

As the Quantitative Trader for our Futures Product, you will design, implement, and optimize models and strategies that power our high-leverage trading ecosystem. You will lead quantitative research, market risk modeling, and trading execution for perpetual futures—driving profitability, liquidity, and risk resilience.

This role is critical to the successful launch and scaling of our Derivatives trading revenue line.

What You’ll Be Owning

• Quantitative Modeling & Analytics
  • Design, test, and maintain pricing, liquidation, P&L for futures and leveraged products.
  • Build volatility and liquidation models using real-time and historical data. Backtest trading strategies across varied market conditions.
  • Analyze trader behavior to detect manipulation, aggressive leverage, or systemic risk.
• Risk Monitoring & Management
  • Develop and maintain real-time margin risk alerts and liquidation simulations.
  • Monitor funding rates, index price divergence, and open interest concentrations.
  • Run stress tests for extreme market events.
• Trading & Execution
  • Deploy and manage proprietary and market-making strategies to achieve target volumes, spreads, and profitability.
  • Scale trading volumes, expand pairs, and maximize revenue contribution to WIG.
    • Required Notional Volume: $236.25M/month notional volume (~$7.88M/day)
    • Maintain order book depth of ≥$500k with ≤0.2% spread during active hours.
    • Maintain ≥60% profitable trades for proprietary/market-making activity.
    • Generate ≥$47k/month net revenue from Futures.
• Data & Infrastructure
  • Work with Data Engineers to build data pipelines and dashboards for rapid analysis and alerts.
  • Integrate APIs from major exchanges for live market data and risk monitoring.
  • Automate execution and monitoring to minimize manual intervention.

Who We’re Looking For

• 3–6+ years in quant finance/trading with focus on derivatives or margin products.
• Expert in Python (pandas, numpy, scipy, matplotlib) and SQL.
• Deep understanding of futures/perpetual swap mechanics, leverage, and funding.
• Proven experience in VAR, CVAR, Sharpe, and drawdown analysis.
• Strong backtesting and time-series analysis skills.
• Ability to act decisively during high-volatility events.
• Experience with real-time trading or risk alert systems.
• Familiarity with major exchange APIs.
• Exposure to on-chain analytics and wallet behavior profiling.
• Prior work on quant dashboards or risk monitors.

You’ll Work With

• Market Operations to design or refine pricing models, execute algorithms, and hedging strategies that the trading desk uses in real-time. Provide statistical insights and backtesting for market-making strategies.
• Product to define risk limits, margin logic, and funding mechanisms.
• Engineering to implement data pipelines and real-time risk monitoring.
• Compliance to surface suspicious trading activity and fulfill regulatory triggers.

Why Quidax

At Quidax, we’re building the future of finance in Africa through crypto. You’ll have the freedom to innovate, the space to lead, and the backing to build something that truly scales. If you’re ready to build an engineering org that delivers excellence at scale, let’s talk.

What’s In It For You

When you join Quidax, you’re not just taking a job — you’re jumping into a community that’s bold, remote-first, and building for the future. Here’s what you get:

• Fair Pay + Ownership — Competitive salary based on your skills and experience; annual merit-based reviews to keep your growth visible and rewarded.
• Growth That’s Real — Annual performance reviews + clear promotion cycles; recognition for great work — from shoutouts to milestone rewards; personal development fund (courses, books, conferences); study leave so you can keep learning.
• Work That Works For You — Fully remote forever + flexible working hours.
• Time Off That Respects Life — Unlimited paid time off + Nigerian national holidays; parental, sick, compassionate, and life event leave; we show up for you.
• Connection That Feels Real — Quarterly remote team hangouts + annual offsite; interest-based communities (SIGs); regular engagement surveys; your voice matters; health & life coverage in select locations.

TL;DR: You’ll do meaningful work, grow fast, and have the flexibility to live your best life — all while building something big with people who care.

Let’s build the future of finance together

How to apply

We love seeing applications that speak directly to us. It’s easy for your application to get lost in a sea of generic ones, especially when we’re sorting through dozens of them. So, make yours stand out! Show us your personality, your passion, and why you’re the perfect fit. We appreciate the effort it takes to create something thoughtful and unique.

If you make it through to the next stage, you’ll likely get a pre-interview questionnaire. Think of it as a chance to show us how you’d approach the challenges we face here at Quidax. Imagine you’re already part of the team and walk us through your thought process as you tackle the problems we throw your way.

What our hiring process looks like

It’s a three-step process!

1. First Connect (with the Recruiter) - 30 mins. Let’s talk about your experience, your story, and how you might fit at Quidax.

2. Technical Assessment - Show us how you solve problems.

3. Technical Chat - 60 – 90 mins. Get to meet the team and the people you’ll work with.

Please note: Conversations/interviews will kickoff in Q1 2026.

Stay connected with Quidax through LinkedIn and Instagram for the latest updates.