Staff Low-Latency Trading Systems Engineer

Staff Low-Latency Trading Systems Engineer (HFT)
Location: Remote (UK / Europe)
Package: Highly competitive & fully negotiable (top-end candidates will be very well rewarded)
 
A cutting-edge trading technology environment is seeking a Staff Low-Latency Trading Systems Engineer to design and build exchange-grade infrastructure at the forefront of market microstructure and high-performance execution.
 
This is a deeply technical, high-impact role focused on the absolute critical path—where microseconds matter and engineering quality directly influences trading outcomes.
 
The Role
 
This position sits at the core of a high-performance trading stack, owning the architecture and development of ultra-low-latency systems used in real-time execution environments.
 
The successful candidate will operate close to the metal—optimising every layer from hardware interaction through to matching logic—while maintaining determinism, resilience, and market integrity.
 
What You’ll Be Working On

• Designing and building high-performance order books and matching engines
• Developing exchange-grade connectivity and market data systems
• Optimising hot-path performance (memory, CPU, latency, concurrency)
• Engineering ultra-low-latency networking and packet processing systems
• Implementing robust risk controls, replay systems, and fault tolerance
• Working across Linux internals, CPU architecture, and hardware-level optimisation
• Contributing to overall system architecture and engineering direction

What You’ll Bring

• Deep expertise in order books, matching engines, and market microstructure
• 8+ years building performance-critical, low-latency systems (C++, C, or Rust)
• Experience in HFT, exchanges, or market infrastructure environments
• Strong understanding of networking, protocols, and low-latency data flows
• Advanced knowledge of CPU architecture, memory models, and concurrency
• Ability to design systems that balance performance, correctness, and resilience
• Strong technical leadership and architectural ownership experience

Nice to Have

• Rust as a primary systems language
• Experience building or rewriting matching engines or trading infrastructure
• Knowledge of FIX, ITCH, OUCH, SBE or similar protocols
• Exposure to FPGA, kernel bypass, or colocated trading environments
• Experience with time synchronisation (PTP) and deterministic systems design
• Interest in applying exchange-grade performance to crypto-native systems

Why This Role

• Work on genuinely complex, performance-critical systems
• Operate at the forefront of low-latency trading and market design
• High level of ownership and technical autonomy
• Remote-first across the UK and Europe
• Package fully negotiable, with significant upside for high-calibre candidates

This is an opportunity for a senior engineer to take ownership of systems where performance is everything and engineering excellence is non-negotiable.

Certus Recruitment Group is a well-established and experienced specialist consultancy providing GTM and Technical recruitment services. We serve the technology sector across the UK, Europe, North America, and Australia.