Every published piece filed under markets. Written for people working in, moving into or hiring across quant firms, and readable without applying for anything.
A state-by-state map of US hedge fund and trading employment, with each market's strengths and search demand.
Short answer: New York leads by a wide margin, followed by Illinois (Chicago), Connecticut (Greenwich and Stamford), California (the Bay Area), Massachusetts (Boston), Florida (Miami) and Texas.
What people search: Semrush shows the strongest location searches are "hedge funds in nyc" and "hedge funds in san francisco" (about 1,000 each), then "hedge funds in miami" (320), "hedge funds in boston", "hedge funds in greenwich ct" and "hedge fund jobs nyc" (260 each), "trading firms in chicago" (210) and "hedge funds in dallas" (170).
Boston's hedge fund and quant market: what sets it apart, the roles in demand and how candidates from local universities get in.
Short answer: Boston combines one of the largest US asset management clusters with a deep university talent pool, which makes it strong for systematic research, data and engineering seats.
What people search: "Hedge funds in boston" draws about 260 monthly US searches and "hedge fund jobs boston" about 50, both low difficulty.
Greenwich, Stamford and the Connecticut hedge fund corridor: why firms are there, which roles they hire and the commute reality.
Short answer: Greenwich and nearby Stamford and Westport became a hedge fund centre because of proximity to New York, lower taxes than New York City and space for campus-style offices.
What people search: "Hedge funds in greenwich ct" draws about 260 monthly US searches and "hedge funds in connecticut" about 50, both low difficulty.
Miami and South Florida's growing hedge fund market: the drivers, the firms, the roles, and what to check before relocating.
Short answer: Since 2020 a number of hedge funds and trading firms have opened or expanded in Miami and South Florida, most visibly Citadel, which moved its headquarters there in 2022.
What people search: "Hedge funds in miami" draws about 320 monthly US searches and "hedge fund jobs miami" about 90, both low difficulty.
New York's hedge fund and trading firm market: the employers, the non-quant seats, pay context and where to find live roles.
Short answer: New York City is the largest hedge fund and quant employer base in the US, home to firms such as Two Sigma, D.
What people search: "Hedge funds in nyc" draws about 1,000 monthly US searches, "hedge fund jobs nyc" about 260 and "hedge fund jobs new york" about 50, all rated low difficulty.
Software engineer pay in Chicago, how trading firms shape the top of the market, and how to compare offers with New York.
Short answer: In Chicago, proprietary trading firms set the top of the software engineering pay market, especially for C++, low-latency and infrastructure roles.
What people search: "Software engineer salary chicago" draws about 210 monthly US searches, rated low difficulty (19/100).
How software engineer pay at New York trading firms compares with the wider NYC tech market, and what moves it.
Short answer: Software engineers at New York trading firms and hedge funds are generally paid above the city's tech average, with a base salary plus a discretionary bonus rather than stock.
What people search: "Software engineer salary nyc" draws about 320 monthly US searches and "software engineer salary new york" about 170, both low difficulty.
Chicago's proprietary trading and market-making firms, the engineering-heavy roles they hire, and how pay compares with New York.
Short answer: Chicago is the centre of US proprietary trading and market making, built around the CME futures and options exchanges.
What people search: "Trading firms in chicago" draws about 210 monthly US searches (moderate difficulty, 38/100), "prop trading firms chicago" about 90 and "hedge fund jobs chicago" about 20.
Quant trading uses mathematical models and computational power to execute trades, relying on data analysis and algorithmic decision-making rather than human intuition. It spans various strategies, from high-frequency trading to long-term quantitative investing, and is a core function across prop trading firms, market makers, and hedge funds.
The Core Principles of Quant Trading: At its heart, quant trading is about systematically exploiting market inefficiencies or patterns that are detectable through data analysis.
Types of Quant Trading Strategies: Quant trading encompasses a broad spectrum of strategies, varying by time horizon, asset class, and complexity.