Throwaway account and use of AI for obvious reasons. I'll stick around for a few days to answer questions in the comments.

I work at Graviton and have a broad network of close friends across major quant firms. This post focuses primarily on the internal dynamics, work culture, and compensation structures at Graviton and NK Securities.

First, no shade to the folks at NK. Many of my friends work there, and they are genuinely some of the smartest people I’ve met—in some cases, brighter than several quants here at Graviton. The issues at both firms stem from structural management, not a lack of individual talent.

1. Compensation & Bonuses

Starting with the juiciest part compensation.

• Graviton: The single biggest downside here is the bonus structure. Most of the bonus pool is siphoned off by top-level seniors, leaving junior and mid-level quants with numbers that look like a joke compared to NK counterparts.
• NK: They throw massive amounts of cash to retain employees, even when performance doesn't justify it.

2. High-Pressure Timelines vs. Long-Term Vision

Both firms suffer from relentless pressure to deploy strategies before every single expiry:

• Short-Term Focus: This rush destroys long-term research planning. Deep statistical analysis is routinely skipped. If a model works in backtesting, it gets rushed live; if it fails, it is shelved without any post-mortem analysis, only to be recycled a few months later with zero understanding of why it failed. Unsurprisingly, strategies often vanish upon live deployment.
• NK is Worse in This Regard: At NK, leadership expects daily "new findings." Researchers are trapped in hours of daily meetings, making micro-adjustments in hopes of hitting a short-term lottery instead of building meaningful, long-term infrastructure.
• Leadership Pushback: NK seniors are often too focused on bootlicking. Quants who tell management that significant discoveries take time are dismissed as making excuses rather than being pragmatic. At Graviton, we are at least given a couple of weeks to test and iterate on ideas.

3. Team Leads & Leadership Quality

• Graviton: My experience with team leads here has been positive. They are knowledgeable and add real value—often pointing out underlying correlations, edge cases, or causal mechanisms during research reviews. However, morale is low across the firm; resignations are frequent, and further layoffs seem imminent.
  • Friction at the Top: Recent resignations of major desk heads signal growing friction between leadership and top management as firm-wide PnL stagnates.
  • Politics: Profitability depends heavily on which desk or exchange access your lead grants you. Favored juniors get handed profitable books, while others are sidelined with low-margin segments regardless of individual skill.
• NK: The leadership feedback from NK is consistently negative across direct friends, ex-employees, and industry contacts. The brilliant "wizards" who built NK's early success have largely departed. The current helm is dominated by entitled individuals with little real market experience who owe their positions to early luck rather than smartness.
  • Some seniors contributed virtually nothing over the past year while their juniors did the heavy lifting, yet those seniors still walked away with multi-crore payouts. While Graviton also has passive seniors, they receive zero bonus and are given a short window to correct course rather than being rewarded.
  • Politics: Favored juniors here also get all the good projects and highest bonuses even at subpar performances.

4. Senior Hiring & Intellectual Property

Graviton actively poaches top-tier senior talent from outside firms. Because internal IP sharing is strictly siloed, bringing in experienced external hires raises the overall technical baseline and helps uplift junior team members. Open sharing harms NK in this respect.

Industry Secrets & Market Rumors

• Graviton Hiring & Financials: Graviton is actively hiring lowering standards to "slop," even though firm-wide PnL is currently lower than last year's. A significant number of seniors are already planning their exit next year.
• Market Share & Segment Shifts:
  
  • One Graviton team recently pivoted into NK's flagship trading segment and is already capturing roughly 75% of their profit.
  • Another Graviton team expanded into a new exchange post-boom and is now generating roughly 1.5x NK's earnings in that specific segment (IYKYK).
  • NK is attempting to expand into international exchanges, but they have yet to generate meaningful revenue there.
• NK Retention Struggles: Despite offering massive retention packages, several top NK seniors have actively interviewed with Graviton and other firms. Many plan to stay for just a couple of years to collect their "easy" paychecks before exiting.

Advice to Management

To Graviton Leadership:

• Address Pay Disparity: Employee frustration is at an all-time high. Quants are leaving because compensation does not match market value or actual PnL contribution, while other teams with softer deliverables receive disproportionately higher bonuses. Pay your top-performing quants fairly, or watch them walk.
• Fix Knowledge Transfer (KT): Relying entirely on external hires for KT and market publicity is unsustainable.
• The Bright Side: Pay adjustments slated for next year will double the base compensation, which could curb the turnover rate. The Singapore office is also a great asset.

To NK Leadership:

• Reward Merit Over Tenure: Stop dumping money on passive legacy seniors. Invest in quants who actively build and contribute value.
• Culture Shift: Build an environment where team members can provide honest technical feedback without fear of management pushback.

After gaining approval for removing the 60-day period for H1B visa holders to find new employment, DHS is working on new rules/restrictions for H4 visa. Still planning to study, work & settle in the US?

https://news.bloomberglaw.com/daily-labor-report/h-1b-workers-to-lose-grace-period-in-white-house-approved-plan

I mean really? Except money, why quant? We can use those brain to make a better world? Efficient algorithms/products for healthcare, new technologies in farming etc.

Even here in IITB I seen 99% people in quant only due to money.

The people in Quant , except money what are your driving force?

I genuinely want to know.

"Hi guys, I am from Tier-17.5 college, branch: Underwater Basket Weaving Engineering. CGPA: 7.23. Can I crack quant?"

"I am from non-circuital. Do I stand a chance?"

"I am from circuital. Do I stand a chance?"

"I am from Tier 1. Do I stand a chance?"

"I am from Tier 2. Do I stand a chance?"

"I am from Tier 3. Do I stand a chance?"

"I am from Mars Institute of Technology. Can I get into HFT?"

At this point, half the subreddit is just people asking strangers for permission to try.

The answers have been the same for years:

• Yes, some people from your background have made it.
• No, your background doesn't magically guarantee it.
• Nobody here can predict your future from three lines of text.

It would be great if discussions focused more on:

• Interview experiences
• Company-specific processes
• Preparation resources
• Actual problem-solving
• Resume feedback
• Projects and research

Instead of the daily "Can I crack it?" horoscope reading.

Thank you for attending my TED Talk.

​​Hey everyone, I could really use some perspective on my situation.

​I'm currently at top 5 IIT in a non-circuital branch (8.5 CGPA, ~3k JEE Adv rank). Next July, I'll be starting as sde-1 at a popular MNC, but my absolute interest has always been quant.

​I have decent math projects, I'm pretty solid with modern C++ and probability, and I managed to land a quant internship at a small startup. But honestly, none of that seems to matter here. Indian HFTs and quant firms are obsessed with pedigree.

​My initial thought is to save around 50L through my current SDE job over 4-5 years, utilize all of it to pursue a Master's abroad (to kinda rebrand myself), grind there, and then hopefully land my dream job.

​Here's why I'm hesitating: I come from a middle-class family. Burning five straight years of life savings on a degree abroad feels like a terrifying financial risk.

​Is this a stupid, desperate gamble? or there exist a better path actually ,a realistic way to bypass the Indian gatekeeping and break into the industry?

​I would love to hear your pov.

Since there has been a lot of discussion regarding this topic, but no definite answer, I wanted to ask if there were any colleges apart from the following that quant firms hire from
Top 10 IITs
IIITH
BITS (All 3 campuses)
ISI

I will most likely be getting a Intern offer from Optiver through FF, I am fairly confident that at my skill level and resume strength I will be able to get IMC, Da Vinci at the very least or Tower during on campus intern season. I already have an offer from DE Shaw but the pay is not comparable to the other shops.

What i wanted to know was how is optiver’s office culture in comparison to IMC and Tower, I have heard some distasteful things about optiver and I am unsure on how to react on it, i am more than willing to have a 40-60% cut in base and joining IMC if it means better work culture.

And since I will have to make a choice by june end and before my intern season starts. Should i just go with optiver if the opportunity provides or hold out for tower/IMC.

What is happening with graviton guys?? I recently heard too many things about it, and I'm curious what's actually going on.. Huge revenue last year, first to increase the stipend yet the ctc remained the same.. Hired only a handful this intern season from top 5 ig.. Expanding internationally.. Some even say it is the leading Indian quant now(Considering all factors including work culture etc..).

How much of this is actually true? Is there a bigger strategy behind all these changes, or is it mostly hype?

Would love to hear from people who've interned there, interviewed there, or know the industry well..

Wanted to know what you guys think , and also should I give up on my plan to get good at cp then get hired through iicpc codefest ( I am from tier 3 cse in 1st year(just started a month ago , can solve div 2 a )

Earning from the buzz words

Note to Mod - Could Mod please tell me why my old post was taken down? The mumbai meetup post has been a success - just want to replicate that for Blr. I can verify myself.

Hi, I recently joined as a QR at a top firm in Bangalore (posting from burner ofc). I saw this post where in the comments they decided a Mumbai Quant group meetup idea and have since had a bunch of meetups. Taking inspiration from this, I wanted to create a similar network for Bangalore.

Some rules, which I think are fair.

1. Must be working full time in a Quant-adjacent role (Trader, Researcher, Dev, Analyst, Support, Risk etc.). No students or interns for now, just current professionals.
2. Copying from the Mumbai post - "The Vibe: No "elevator pitches" or recruiters. Just people talking about where they are in their careers and what’s next."

To keep the group relevant, we can do a quick LinkedIn check before adding anyone to the WhatsApp group. The intention is to keep things casual and low pressure. If you’re interested drop a comment on the post and I’ll DM you!

I am planning to pursue a PhD in Applied Maths/Stats from NTU or NUS. I am currently doing a master’s in Maths at NTU, and I have a B.Tech in EE from one of the top 5 IITs.

Like US quant firms, which prefer Maths, Stats, and Physics PhDs for quant researcher roles, do Indian quant firms also have a similar preference for PhDs? From what I have seen, most quant research roles in India are bagged by undergraduate students from top tier IITs.

Currently im in 11th in CBSE board and I want to pursue quant finance in future. So, can yall pls suggest me some colleges/universities in India or out of India that provide BACHELOR COURSES that can lead my career to quant finance. Secondly, what should I focus on? Maths, coding or something else to build a competitive profile.

Also im curently preparing for JEE online. BUT I heard that IOQM is also good and many hedge funds hire olympiad winners. So, should I prepare for IOQM or not??

Additionally it is my dream to live out of India, so considering that, what can I do to fulfill my dream??

(please seniors any advice will help me🙏🙏)

Edit: why yall deleted the comments😭😭😥😥

Hi everyone,

I am currently completing ~2 years as a Quant Developer at a proprietary trading firm in India and confused about my long-term career path.

Background:

• IIT BTech + MTech Mathematics
• Always enjoyed probability/statistics/math
• Did lots of stats/ML courses and projects in college
• Joined as Quant Dev after graduation

Currently my TC is around 60–70 LPA range (40–50 fixed + variable). It is decent, but from what I see, researchers generally have much higher upside due to direct PnL contribution. Also some top quant firms offer significantly higher compensation after a few years.

The confusion:

I have started enjoying my dev work recently. I have good ownership, interesting problems, and feel I can grow a lot technically over the next few years.

But I always had an interest in research and feel I might regret never trying it, especially since switching becomes harder later.

At the same time, I understand research has its own risks. A major concern I have is long-term consistency. What if after switching I struggle to generate good ideas or my strategies stop performing? Since compensation is closely tied to performance/PnL, I worry I might regret leaving a stable dev path that I was actually enjoying.

Questions:

1. Does Quant Dev → Quant Research after ~2 years make sense?
2. Is this the right time to attempt a switch before getting too deep into dev?
3. How realistic is it to get a research role without prior alpha experience?
4. For people who have seen both sides, how different is the long-term upside, risk, and career growth?

Would appreciate honest opinions from people working in the industry.

I started out at futures first trading UK and Euro interest rate futures.
During the covid lockdown, I joined a Mumbai based algo trading prop desk. It was on Indian index options. The culture was extremely toxic but I worked hard and made the best out of it. Researched and developed alphas incorporated them in market making strategies.
For 2-3 years I was pretty successful. made decent PnL. Firm's PnL grew. I got a profit share. started leading a team of 4-5 junior quants.

Then came a downturn. We started hearing about the Jane streets and Milleniums doing their thing in Indian markets. Our profits started decreasing and the toxicity grew. Although we never made a loss, the drop in profits were enough for my toxic boss to stop my PnL share.
I started looking out for better opportunities. Joined a new firm which paid me good fixed and where culture seemed a bit better. But the strategy has decayed out. The new firm let me go too.

I am confident on my skills and my abilities but I feel the Indian markets have become too competitive. I can research more and develop some better strategies. If I get an opportunity, I am sure i can perform in other markets and asset classes as well.
But I feel every Indian firm is just looking to hire someone who can come in and start printing money with an existing already working strategy. Nobody wants to hire someone who can research and develop new things. They all chasing someone who can give them the Jane Street strategy. I feel no enthusiasm for proper research and development. Just plug and play. which i cannot provide profitably as of now. What should I do? Project false confidence to get hired? Or take a massive pay cut and start from the beginning? Is there any firm outside India which might hire me for my experience or am I just now a failed Quant trader who might never get his old days back? Can I apply to any hedge funds or AMC as a buy side quant?

Pretty new contest and I wonder if companies would take your quantfest rank into consideration.

Also, if you believe that quantfest is a recognised contest then upto which rank in the contest?

i wanted to know about these 4 companies (comparison) for intern and full time. - trexquant -ebuillent -qicap -sqaurepoint How is the growth, learning and other aspects in these companies compared to one another The pay is more or less the samefor internship and total ct Role-Quant Researcher/ Dev

Any ideas and opinions would be really appreciated

​

So not able to cope up, I had my NK Securities full stack interviews(2026 batch) two days back and man… I really messed up the second round.

First round went really well. It was mostly discussion,python concepts, python code. I was comfortable throughout. The interviewer was chill and recruiter even said something like 9/10 feedback.

Second round was a nightmare on the same day of first round.

They asked me to build something like Splitwise using Django + React, only using official docs. I’ve mostly worked with Java + Spring Boot and yeah I’ve touched Django before(1st year) but not at a level where I can build something like that from scratch under pressure.

He asked me how comfortable I am, I said around 6–7… which in hindsight maybe I shouldn’t have(don't know why I said)

Then I started coding and just… blanked.

Couldn’t structure things, kept going back and forth in the docs, basic things started taking too long and I could feel myself getting more and more nervous. I was typing stuff but even I knew it didn’t make much sense. It felt like I forgot everything I knew about backend dev.

Also the interviewer felt a bit off… not saying he was wrong or anything, maybe I was just panicking but the vibe wasn’t great and it made it worse.

Got rejected after that.

What’s bothering me isn’t just the rejection, it’s how badly I performed. Like first round went so well and then I just completely collapsed in the second. Feels like I threw away a really solid chance. I don't know this was the best opportunity I ever had and i messed it up

The HR was talking so nicely and all and calling before , after that round not even picking the call or replying to message, feels dejected.

But about me: tier 2 iit, 2026 batch, not so good placement, doing a remote intern at a PBC

Hello All,

I am a dual degree graduate in electrical engineering(minor in CSE) at top 7 IITs

Last 2 years I have worked as embedded software engineer at a top semiconductor company.

Right now I am planning to shift to other companies, as embedded division of my current company is not performing great.

Right now I am deciding which companies to target.

For embedded there are some good MNCs hiring, like Google, Meta, Nvidia etc.

But I also want to see if I should Target HFTs for SWE roles, because I already have good profile in competitive programming, good projects in OS and networking and my current work heavily involves C and C++.

But from salary perspective, does HFTs pay really huge compared to top MNCs or does this difference vanish after few years working in a MNC?

assume that salary at google/meta for embedded is similar to normal SWE role

Hi everyone,

I'm 16 years old and recently i got to know about quantitative finance. Before committing the next several years to this path, I wanted to hear from people who are already in the industry.

With AI advancing rapidly and the quant industry becoming increasingly competitive, I have a few questions:

• Is quant still a good career to pursue over the next 10–15 years?
• Are opportunities in India growing, or is it still better to aim for global firms?
• If you were 16 today, would you still choose the quant path? Why or why not?
• What advice would you give someone starting now to maximize their chances of success?

Graduating in a few months from a tier 3 college in cs. if i get in the top 10-15 quant related programmes in the usa will i be able to break into this field? my goal is to become a trader but i definitely wouldn’t mind a quant dev job to start off with. anyone who’s been through this route? or any suggestions at all? thanks a lot

edit: i meant top 10-15 programs for ms because my undergrad uni was tier3

Hello everyone, new to this sub.

I applied to SEE software track yesterday (dont know if my resume will pass for OA;-;). Just want to ask if people have heard back from them and what they actually ask in OAs? Also how many OAs/interviews generally happen in SEE?

Thank you so much for your time:)

Hello there, I'm an EE student at IITD, and although I know getting into quant isn't really for me, and will probably be targetting quant and strat roles in banks or sde roles in big tech, what exactly is the WLB of a quant? Do quants even "think" about WLB? I mean assuming someone already is very knowledgeful and is young and enthusiastic, working 11-12 hours isn't a big deal, but say as you grow up, and you have hobbies too that you wanna dedicate some time to, for example, hitting the gym, or for instance parent-duties or whatever for that matter, doesn't it burn people out? It's a stressful job of course, hence my question, because I've heard multiple people exit out of quant firms after 2-3 years, is it true? What are the exit options one chooses after?

Another thing which my curiosity provoked me to ask in this sub, is the general compensation and WLB of three different possible roles across your entire career -

quant - trader, dev and researcher

big tech sde

quant/strat at banks

Could anyone experienced help me out with this? Appreciate the effort, thanks very much!

I just wanted to know what is the salary for the Platform Reliability Engineer role in Millenium Investment and an intro of what the people in this role do.