IMC

I’m Megan, a Graduate Software Engineer. I studied Bachelor of Computer Science (with a Mathematics minor), graduating in January 2018. I grew up in a small city in Germany and lived there for most of my life. This is also where I studied computer science. During my time at university, I took part in an exchange program with the University of Technology Sydney and studied in Sydney for a year. During my exchange year I did an internship at IMC and was offered a graduate position. I went back home to finish my degree and moved back to Sydney just after graduating. I’ve been working at IMC for one year now.

Tell us about your role at IMC and what it involves?

IMC is a market-making trading firm. They develop their own software, which trades on markets all over the world, focusing on low latency, technology-driven trading. My main responsibility at IMC is writing code, to extend, maintain or fix parts of our system. To do this, I need a good understanding of the trader’s requirements and our trading systems, as well as the technical side of things.

If traders need help with the system, it is also part of my responsibility to help them get things running smoothly again.

What work have you been most excited by since starting at IMC?

There’s a quick feedback loop, as we don’t have any external customers. Traders start using new features very quickly. This way I immediately know that my work is having an impact. We also get a lot of responsibility early on to make decisions and help out when there are issues.

IMC is predominantly an algorithmic trading firm with the core of the business focussing on Options, Structured Products and Delta 1 securities including ETFs, futures and rolls. My role at IMC is a value-based market making (VMM) options trader on the Kospi 200 index with a specific focus on broker trading and relationships. VMM differs from IMCs traditional market making trading whereby we hold larger risk for longer periods of time with an opinion on the price. 

A typical day begins with the Macro News Analysts highlighting the key news stories overnight that may influence our trading for the day. Recently this has included discussing US bonds and rates, inflation, semi-conductor headlines and the banking crisis. Trading starts one hour after the meeting and the market is open for just under 7 hours. If trading is busy—either due to overnight news or market flow, my focus for the day will be adjusting our pricing to execute in and out of trades. Brokers are also very important in VMM trading where banks or other counterparties will request prices on certain structures that trade in larger size, more illiquid expiries than on screen. A large part of my role is trading and building relationships with these brokers and working prices to get the best levels for our position. On days where the market is quiet, I spend time on projects. Once the market closes, as a team we wrap how the day went and focus on any improvements we can make.

What is your background and how did you get into trading?

I grew up In Hamilton, New Zealand and went on to study Mechanical Engineering at the University of Canterbury, where I graduated in 2018. I always enjoyed maths and sciences at school but honestly didn’t have a clear direction on what I was going to study at university before I had to apply. Engineering appealed to me because the degree combined science and a design aspect that I had always been drawn to, as well as, the more analytical side of engineering.

I got into trading in a similar manner to how I got into engineering—by knowing what I didn't want to do. My work experience throughout my degree was unstimulating and I was looking for something different when I discovered trading through a presentation at my university. After university, I got a job as a graduate at a trading firm, before moving to IMC where I have been for 1.5 years. 

I have also had the opportunity to solo travel Australia, managing to dodge covid lockdowns. This was amazing for my mental health and really helped put what I wanted to achieve in my career into perspective.

Are there other degree types that would be well-suited to trading?

Trading isn’t specific to any one degree. Anyone with a strong understanding of maths and a diligent problem solver is capable of being a trader. IMC caters to lots of different personalities and skill sets. Strong algorithmic and technical skills are valuable in market making or research whereas resilience and bigger picture understanding are essential in VMM. 

What is the best thing about your job?

The best thing about trading is working in a fast-paced, challenging environment where every day can bring a new challenge. IMC, despite being externally competitive, is internally collaborative so any achievements or losses are shared between everyone. The flat structure at IMC also means a great idea can come from a 6-month grad or a 5-year trader. We all have a strong work ethic but keep work entertaining.

What is a limitation of your job?

Position taking trading can be stressful and a large part of the job is learning how to manage that. Additionally, sometimes ideas that take a decent amount of time to be dedicated to don’t work out or the idea may not be viable due to the time may take to execute.

Do you have any advice for someone looking to get into trading?

Trading can be a bit of black box if you’ve never been exposed to it before. Get involved and learn as much as possible. Trading firms, like IMC, offer information sessions, trading games, website info and careers fairs to let people know more about the world of trading. If you think that trading might be for you then give it a go. Diverse thought is welcome and encouraged as it adds to the company and improves performance. When I signed up to IMC, I wasn't sure that trading suited my personality, but I have found the areas that suit me and where my skills are valuable.