The salaries at global trading and investment companies have been rising rapidly in recent years. Top firms like hedge funds, prop trading companies, and quantitative trading firms are paying over $100k base salaries for talent. Key factors driving the pay increases include strong market performance leading to higher profits and intense competition for top talent.
Hedge funds pay high base plus bonus
The H1B visa data shows top hedge funds like Citadel, Balyasny Asset Management, and Millennium Management pay base salaries ranging from $150k to $250k for portfolio managers and traders. With bonuses, total compensation can exceed $500k. The demand for talent has caused base salaries at multi-billion dollar funds to rise over 30% in the last 5 years.
Prop trading firms incentivize with profit share
Proprietary trading firms like Optiver, IMC, and Virtu Financial pay lower base salaries around $100k to $150k, but have incentive systems based on sharing trading profits. Top performers at these elite high frequency trading firms can earn over $500k total in strong markets.
Quant funds pay for data science skills
Quantitative investing funds like Renaissance Technologies, Two Sigma, DE Shaw, and Citadel Securities are hiring data scientists, quants, and engineers at starting salaries of $250k or more. There is a huge talent war for those with computer science PhDs or coding ability to develop complex statistical models.
Global trading and investment companies are paying higher salaries to attract top talent with skills in markets, data science, and technology. Base compensation now exceeds $150k at many top firms with profit sharing or bonuses pushing total earnings even higher.