They do a lot of things right, but have room to improve - Trader Optiver Employee Review

4.0
Jul 26, 2019
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

I worked at Optiver many years ago, so take everything with a grain of salt. From a trader perspective, they do a lot right. The people are very talented, the software is cutting edge and fast, and the compensation/benefits are very good. I think they also did a good job creating and keeping a culture where everyone tries to improve, and everyone feels like they're on the same team.

Cons

I feel like the top traders don't necessarily make for the top managers, and they need to continue to train traders throughout their career. Non-traders sometimes were treated like second class citizens, which obviously shouldn't be the case. The culture is very aggressive - there's a ton of pressure to keep improving or you could be out of the company sooner rather than later, which is a lot of stress to have. And the comp structure, while good, was very top heavy.

Explore other reviews about Optiver

5.0
Feb 24, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

worked on a lot of different areas of the trading stack; often close with researchers learned about technical components for data driven trading saw my impact day to day

Cons

constant office renovations were a bit distracting, but was told it should be done in 2026

3.0
May 21, 2026
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Good compensation, collaborative environment. Company also seems to aim to be at forefront of new tech such as AI

Cons

When HR mgmt is on record stating things like the company shouldn’t hire females anymore, it really makes you wonder how they make decisions on who should fill management positions

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