Remote Lead Data Scientist – FinTech ML & Trading Leader

Placements24; Mtubatuba Local Municipality; Hybrid; ZAR 1,200,000 - 1,800,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Remote-first role

Above-market salary and performance-b;

Health, dental and vision insurance

Stock option plan

Professional growth and conference支

Home office stipend

Job summary

Placements24 seeks a Lead Data Scientist to drive ML-driven algorithmic trading in a fully remote fintech team. You will lead a skilled data science group, mentor juniors, and push forward predictive modeling, backtesting, and data infrastructure to boost trading performance.

The role requires a PhD/Master’s in a quantitative field and 8+ years in data science with finance focus, plus Python/SQL and cloud expertise. Remote work offers high autonomy and collaboration with traders.

Qualifications

• PhD or Master’s in a quantitative field (e.g., CS, stats, math, physics, financial engineering).
• 8+ years in data science with a focus on quantitative finance or algo trading.
• Demonstrated leadership of data science teams and complex projects.
• Strong knowledge of ML algorithms and time-series modeling.
• Proficient in Python, SQL, and big data tools; experience with cloud platforms.
• Excellent communication and ability to work autonomously in a remote setup.

Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end ML model development for algorithmic trading strategies.
• Design robust data pipelines for large financial datasets.
• Conduct quantitative research to find trading opportunities and refine strategies.
• Mentor data scientists and collaborate with traders and engineers.
• Oversee backtesting and performance analysis of trading algorithms.
• Communicate findings clearly to technical and non-technical stakeholders.

Skills

Leadership

Python

SQL

Time series

Deep learning

Reinforcement learning

Pandas/NumPy

Cloud platforms

Education

PhD or Master's in a quantitative field

Tools

Spark

TensorFlow

PyTorch

AWS

Azure

GCP

Job description

Placements24 seeks a Lead Data Scientist to drive ML-driven algorithmic trading in a fully remote fintech team. You will lead a skilled data science group, mentor juniors, and push forward predictive modeling, backtesting, and data infrastructure to boost trading performance.

The role requires a PhD/Master’s in a quantitative field and 8+ years in data science with finance focus, plus Python/SQL and cloud expertise. Remote work offers high autonomy and collaboration with traders.