Tower Research Capital is a private investment company that specializes in quantitative trading and liquidity provision across global financial markets. Founded in 1998 by Mark Gorton, Tower deploys sophisticated algorithms and cutting-edge technology to capture market inefficiencies and generate solid risk-adjusted returns. With $3 billion in assets under management, Tower trades a daily volume exceeding 2% of the US stock market. Its trading strategies span equities, futures, foreign exchange and more. Despite being a major player, Tower maintains a low public profile, focusing relentlessly on performance rather than publicity. Working at Tower offers traders and quants exposure to state-of-the-art infrastructure and some of the best minds in the industry.
Tower deploys advanced algorithms across global markets
Tower Research Capital leverages proprietary algorithms and low-latency infrastructure to implement quantitative trading strategies across global financial markets. With offices in New York, London, Hong Kong and Austin, Tower trades equities, futures, foreign exchange, options and more across North America, Europe and Asia. Its core focus is using technology and data to capture short-term inefficiencies and pricing anomalies. Tower’s trading volume represents over 2% of the daily US stock market – making it one of the largest high frequency trading firms globally. The firm has continued to heavily invest in R&D to improve its trading systems and remain at the cutting edge of market microstructure and quantitative modelling.
Tower generated $4.8 billion in revenue in 2018
Despite maintaining a private profile, Tower’s financial performance is staggering. According to public filings, the firm generated revenue of $4.8 billion in 2018 across its quantitative trading strategies – representing a whopping 50% profit margin. Tower’s return on equity exceeded 400%, highlighting the immense profitability of its technology-driven trading approach. With 2018 regulatory assets of $2.7 billion and around 180 employees, Tower’s profit per employee exceeded an incredible $26 million.
Recruitment at Tower is highly competitive
With its strong performance, Tower recruits some of the top trading talent in the industry across software engineering, quantitative research and trading. However, landing a job is highly competitive given the prestige and compensation upside of working at such a quant powerhouse. Tower seeks traders, strats and quants educated at elite institutions like Princeton, Oxford, Chicago Trading, MIT and more. Extensive coding skills, communication abilities and a stellar academic record are key. For junior hires, total compensation can exceed $500k including base and bonus.
Tower Research Capital stands among the world’s most successful quantitative investment firms. Its mastery of market microstructure, cutting-edge infrastructure and relentless focus on performance has generated immense profits over the past decade across global markets.