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Senior Software Engineer (Options)

DRW · Chicago, IL · $175,000–$250,000 a year · Firmwide Technology

Posted Sep 22, 2026 · We last checked this listing on Oct 6, 2026

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Likely interview questions for this role

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

About your past

You'd build trading applications and tools on an options desk with traders and quantitative researchers. Tell me about a tool you built that users relied on daily.

What they are checking: Experience building software that real users depend on, ideally in a fast trading environment.

Tell me about a time you disagreed with a researcher or trader about how something should be built.

What they are checking: Ability to push back respectfully and find solutions that work for both sides.

How do you mentor less experienced engineers on the team?

What they are checking: Senior-level contribution to growing the team beyond their own code.

Describe a design decision you made that you'd change now.

What they are checking: Honest reflection on past technical choices and what they would weigh differently with what they know now.

What would you do

A trader needs a feature by tomorrow's open. How do you balance speed with code quality?

What they are checking: Pragmatism under pressure while protecting system stability and long-term maintainability.

Walk me through how you'd debug a production issue during market hours.

What they are checking: Calm, careful troubleshooting when every minute of downtime matters.

About the work

How would you design a system that calculates live Greeks across a large options portfolio?

What they are checking: Combining performance engineering with options knowledge to deliver timely risk numbers.

How do you handle concurrency in a system that processes market data and trader input at the same time?

What they are checking: Solid understanding of concurrency patterns and their pitfalls in real-time systems.

How do you test trading software so you trust it with real money?

What they are checking: Rigorous testing practices, including simulation and replay, for high-stakes systems.

What do you understand about how options are priced and hedged?

What they are checking: Enough domain knowledge to understand what traders need and why.

Practice this interview out loud.

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The full job description

As published by DRW.

DRW is a diversified trading firm with over 3 decades of experience bringing sophisticated technology and exceptional people together to operate in markets around the world. We value autonomy and the ability to quickly pivot to capture opportunities, so we operate using our own capital and trading at our own risk. Headquartered in Chicago with offices throughout the U.S., Canada, Europe, and Asia, we trade a variety of asset classes including Fixed Income, ETFs, Equities, FX, Commodities and Energy across all major global markets. We have also leveraged our expertise and technology to expand into three non-traditional strategies: real estate, venture capital and cryptoassets. We operate with respect, curiosity and open minds. The people who thrive here share our belief that it’s not just what we do that matters–it's how we do it. DRW is a place of high expectations, integrity, innovation and a willingness to challenge consensus. DRW is looking for an outstanding Senior Software Engineer to join our options trading desk. In this role, you will focus on designing, building, and implementing trading applications and tools. You will be an integral member of an algorithmic trading team comprising experienced technologists, quantitative researchers, and traders. Your team will work closely to solve challenging technological problems. We are looking for talented programmers eager to develop new technologies that directly impact our business. Responsibilities: • Design, build, test, and maintain data-intensive desktop applications and reusable libraries using C# and modern .NET • Develop and maintain systems to ensure application performance, integrity and reliability for maintaining maximal up-time, and logging and traceability to aid in the support of mission-critical production systems • Profile and improve rendering, memory usage, concurrency, reactive data pipelines, and application startup performance • Collaborate with quantitative researchers, traders, and other developers • Own software through its full lifecycle, including design, implementation, automated testing, instrumentation, deployment, staged rollout, and production support • Leverage AI-assisted and agentic development tools to accelerate delivery, improve software quality, and evolve the team’s engineering practices. Requirements: • Bachelor’s in Computer Science or related discipline or relevant work experience. • 5+ years of professional software development experience, with substantial experience building C#/.NET desktop applications • A thorough understanding of C# UI development and tooling • Should be comfortable in a fast-paced environment that continually embraces the latest technologies and techniques. • Effective communication skills, ability to read and write high and mid-level architecture documentation • Awareness of emerging technologies/standards The annual base salary range for this position is $175,000 to $250,000 depending on the candidate’s experience, qualifications, and relevant skill set. The position is also eligible for an annual discretionary bonus. In addition, DRW offers a comprehensive suite of employee benefits including group medical, pharmacy, dental and vision insurance, 401k (with discretionary employer match), short and long-term disability, life and AD&D insurance, health savings accounts, and flexible spending accounts. For more information about DRW's processing activities and our use of job applicants' data, please view our Privacy Notice at https://drw.com/privacy-notice . California residents, please review the California Privacy Notice for information about certain legal rights at https://drw.com/california-privacy-notice . [#LI-KS1]  

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