Jobs › Akuna Capital

Quantitative Researcher

Akuna Capital · Chicago, IL · Quant Research

Posted Sep 2, 2026 · We last checked this listing on Sep 20, 2026

Apply at Akuna Capital

Likely interview questions for this role

Written from this job description, not a generic list. Each one notes what the interviewer is really checking.

Behavioral

Walk me through a research project where you built a predictive model from raw data to something that actually got used. What was the hardest part?

whether the candidate has end-to-end research ownership, not just model fitting

Tell me about a time your model or signal looked great in backtest but failed or underperformed once it was live. What did you do?

awareness of overfitting and how they respond to being wrong in a fast market

Tell me about the most rigorous piece of research you've done, academic or professional. What made you confident the result was real and not noise?

depth and honesty of research process, since the posting explicitly wants a proven research background

How do you keep yourself updated on new machine learning techniques, and can you give an example of one you tried applying to a real problem, even if it didn't work out?

genuine curiosity and hands-on experimentation versus buzzword familiarity

Technical

Suppose you have a dataset of options quotes and trades and you want to find a predictive feature for short-term price movement. How would you go about building and validating that feature?

practical feature engineering and validation discipline, not just naming algorithms

How do you decide between a simpler statistical model and a more complex machine learning model for a given trading signal?

judgment about tradeoffs between interpretability, speed, and predictive power in a trading context

Explain overfitting to someone non-technical, then tell me how you'd detect it in a research pipeline that has hundreds of features and limited data history.

depth of statistical understanding and ability to communicate it simply

You are given a coin that you're told is biased. How would you design an experiment or statistical test to estimate the bias and how confident would you be in your answer?

core probability and statistics fluency under time pressure

Walk me through how you would price a simple option and what assumptions in that model worry you most in a live, fast-moving market.

grasp of options fundamentals and where theory breaks down in practice

Describe a piece of code you wrote in Python or C++ that had to run efficiently at scale. What made it fast, and what would you optimize next?

actual programming competence versus academic-only coding experience

Situational

Tell me about a time you disagreed with a trader or a colleague about whether a model or strategy was ready to go live. How did you resolve it?

ability to collaborate and communicate technical judgment across a multidisciplinary team

If you inherited a research pipeline that was slow, undocumented, and hard for others to reproduce, what would you change first and why?

instinct for scalable, reproducible research infrastructure rather than one-off scripts

Say the market suddenly moves in a way your model didn't anticipate and your desk needs an answer in minutes, not days. What do you do?

ability to think and communicate quickly under real market pressure

If two of your colleagues on the team have very different intuitions about a market and you're building a shared model, how do you reconcile that in your research?

comfort working in a multidisciplinary team where traders and researchers may see things differently

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The full job description

As published by Akuna Capital.

About Akuna: Akuna Capital is an innovative trading firm with a strong focus on collaboration, cutting-edge technology, data driven solutions, and automation. We specialize in providing liquidity as an options market maker – meaning we are committed to providing competitive quotes that we are willing to both buy and sell. To do this successfully, we design and implement our own low latency technologies, trading strategies, and mathematical models.  Our Founding Partners first conceptualized Akuna in their hometown of Sydney. They opened the firm’s first office in 2011 in the heart of the derivatives industry and the options capital of the world – Chicago. Today, Akuna is proud to operate from additional offices in Sydney, Shanghai, London, and Singapore.  What you’ll do as a Quantitative Researcher at Akuna: Akuna’s Trading and Research teams are seeking Quant Researchers to join a multidisciplinary group of mathematicians, statisticians, technologists and traders. These teams drive the development of trading strategies and predictive models by combining quantitative rigor with deep expertise in financial markets. In this role, you will join one of our Quant teams based on your experience and interests, including Low Latency/MMS, Quant Strategy Research, Volatility & Pricing, Delta One and Quant Development. We are looking for talented researchers who can apply and develop machine learning algorithms to contribute to Akuna’s strategy portfolio. In this role, you will:  <ul> <li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="3" data-list-defn-props="{"335552541":1,"335559685":720,"335559991":360,"469769226":"Symbol","469769242":[8226],"469777803":"left","469777804":"","469777815":"multilevel"}" data-aria-posinset="1" data-aria-level="1">Develop trading strategies using statistical and machine learning algorithms</li> <li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="3" data-list-defn-props="{"335552541":1,"335559685":720,"335559991":360,"469769226":"Symbol","469769242":[8226],"469777803":"left","469777804":"","469777815":"multilevel"}" data-aria-posinset="1" data-aria-level="1">Drive improvements in predictive models through rigorous signal and feature research</li> <li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="3" data-list-defn-props="{"335552541":1,"335559685":720,"335559991":360,"469769226":"Symbol","469769242":[8226],"469777803":"left","469777804":"","469777815":"multilevel"}" data-aria-posinset="1" data-aria-level="1">Design and optimize machine learning workflows to support scalable, efficient, and reproducible research</li> <li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="3" data-list-defn-props="{"335552541":1,"335559685":720,"335559991":360,"469769226":"Symbol","469769242":[8226],"469777803":"left","469777804":"","469777815":"multilevel"}" data-aria-posinset="1" data-aria-level="1">Bring a results-driven mindset paired with strong collaboration and communication skills. </li> </ul> Qualities that make great candidates:  <ul> <li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="3" data-list-defn-props="{"335552541":1,"335559685":720,"335559991":360,"469769226":"Symbol","469769242":[8226],"469777803":"left","469777804":"","469777815":"multilevel"}" data-aria-posinset="5" data-aria-level="1">3+ years of strong professional work experience in statistics, machine learning or related area</li> <li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="3" data-list-defn-props="{"335552541":1,"335559685":720,"335559991":360,"469769226":"Symbol","469769242":[8226],"469777803":"left","469777804":"","469777815":"multilevel"}" data-aria-posinset="5" data-aria-level="1">BS/MS/PhD degree in a technical field – Engineering, Computer Science, Math, Physics, or similar</li> <li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="3" data-list-defn-props="{"335552541":1,"335559685":720,"335559991":360,"469769226":"Symbol","469769242":[8226],"469777803":"left","469777804":"","469777815":"multilevel"}" data-aria-posinset="5" data-aria-level="1">Proven research background in academic or professional environment</li> <li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="3" data-list-defn-props="{"335552541":1,"335559685":720,"335559991":360,"469769226":"Symbol","469769242":[8226],"469777803":"left","469777804":"","469777815":"multilevel"}" data-aria-posinset="5" data-aria-level="1">Programming experience in Python or C++</li> <li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="3" data-list-defn-props="{"335552541":1,"335559685":720,"335559991":360,"469769226":"Symbol","469769242":[8226],"469777803":"left","469777804":"","469777815":"multilevel"}" data-aria-posinset="5" data-aria-level="1">Expertise in statistics and machine learning</li> <li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="3" data-list-defn-props="{"335552541":1,"335559685":720,"335559991":360,"469769226":"Symbol","469769242":[8226],"469777803":"left","469777804":"","469777815":"multilevel"}" data-aria-posinset="5" data-aria-level="1">Financial experience or knowledge of trading is a plus</li> <li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="3" data-list-defn-props="{"335552541":1,"335559685":720,"335559991":360,"469769226":"Symbol","469769242":[8226],"469777803":"left","469777804":"","469777815":"multilevel"}" data-aria-posinset="5" data-aria-level="1">The ability to react quickly and accurately to rapidly changing market conditions, including the ability to quickly and accurately respond and/or solve math and coding problems are essential functions of the role</li> </ul> In addition to technical skillsets, Akuna values the unique perspectives people can bring to the table to collaboratively solve complex problems and drive Akuna forward. We want all groups to feel empowered to apply, even if you don’t meet every qualification. We welcome your application and encourage you to take the first steps toward your future with us!  Please note that level/title, as well as team placement, will be determined upon the conclusion of the interview process. If you are a current student or recent graduate, please take a look at our Entry Level and Intern positions.  In accordance with Illinois Equal Pay Act, the minimum base salary starts at $145,000. Exact compensation offered may vary based on many factors including, but not limited to, the candidate’s experience, qualifications, and skill set. This role is also eligible for a discretionary performance bonus as part of the total compensation package and includes a comprehensive benefits package that may encompass employer-paid medical, dental, vision, retirement contributions, paid time off, and other benefits. The minimum base salary herein was determined in good faith by Akuna Capital LLC.

Apply at Akuna Capital

Quantitative Researcher

Likely interview questions for this role

Practice this interview out loud.

The full job description

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Expression of Interest: 2027 Trading Sneak Peek Weeks