Hardware Engineer

IMC

Sydney, Australia

On-site

Who this role is best for

Aimed at mid-to-senior level FPGA engineers who thrive in high-performance trading environments and can bridge technical and trading domains.

Best fit for

Candidates with a background in financial markets and FPGA development experience
— “3+ years’ experience in financial markets, exchange protocols (FIX, OUCH, ITCH), or co-designing FPGA and software systems.”
Individuals who can design hardware systems with deterministic performance and low latency
— “designing and deploying hardware systems that sit on the absolute front line of trading—processing market data, making decisions, and executing trades in nanoseconds.”
Engineers with a strong grasp of digital design principles and optimization techniques
— “Solid understanding of digital design principles, including pipelining, flow control, and clock domain crossing.”

Things to consider

The role demands a high level of technical expertise in FPGA and hardware systems
— “proven ability to optimize for low latency and high throughput in production systems.”

How to stand out

Highlight experience with FPGA development tools like Vivado or Quartus on your resume
— “Experience with FPGA development tools and toolchains (Vivado, Quartus, Synplify, etc.).”
Emphasize projects involving low-latency trading systems or deterministic performance
— “processing market data, making decisions, and executing trades in nanoseconds.”
Showcase collaboration with traders or cross-functional teams in your work history
— “Collaborate with traders and developers to translate strategy requirements into real-time hardware logic.”
Demonstrate your ability to analyze and optimize system performance at multiple levels
— “Analyse and optimize system performance at every level—from transceiver tuning to logic layout.”
Include experience with networking protocols such as Ethernet, TCP, or UDP in your profile
— “Familiarity with networking protocols (e.g., Ethernet, TCP, UDP).”

Pace · Fast PacedCollaboration · HighAutonomy · MediumDecision Impact · Team

Derived from job-description analysis by Serendipath's career intelligence engine.

What success looks like

designing and deploying FPGA-based solutions
collaborating with traders and developers
monitoring and improving FPGA performance

Typical background

3+ years of FPGA or ASIC experienceBS/MS/PhD in Electrical Engineering or related field

Skills & requirements

Required

FPGA EngineeringMarket Data ParsingTrade ExecutionSystem Performance Optimization

Preferred

Networking ProtocolsPythonC++C

Stack & domain

FPGAASICVHDLVerilogSystemverilogPythonC++CDigital DesignPipeliningFlow ControlClock Domain CrossingFPGA Development ToolsNetworking ProtocolsEthernetTCPUDPFinancial MarketsExchange ProtocolsFIXOUCHITCHTrading ExpertiseAdvanced ResearchWorld-class EngineeringLiquidityUltra-low LatencyDeterministic PerformanceMarket DataTrading OutcomesHardware SystemsTransceiver TuningLogic LayoutSimulation And Testing FrameworkSystem ReliabilityBenchmarkingProfilingEmerging TechnologiesHardware AdvantageCommunicationLeadershipNegotiationProblem-solvingTeamworkCustomer ServiceTime ManagementProject ManagementStrategic ThinkingDecision Making

About the role

Original posting from IMC via Greenhouse

IMC is a leading global market maker, driven by technology and built on a foundation of continuous innovation. Our teams blend trading expertise, advanced research, and world-class engineering to provide liquidity across exchanges and asset classes.
At IMC, speed and precision are essential. Our FPGA engineers play a critical role in designing and deploying hardware systems that sit on the absolute front line of trading—processing market data, making decisions, and executing trades in nanoseconds. These systems are custom-built to deliver ultra-low latency and deterministic performance, giving us a decisive edge in highly competitive markets. As part of the FPGA team, you’ll work closely with traders and technologists to build hardware that directly shapes trading outcomes.
We're looking for an exceptional FPGA Engineer to help us push the limits of performance and redefine what's possible in a competitive technological landscape where the best trading idea alone doesn’t cut it anymore. Instead, only the best trading ideas that are enabled via robust, scalable and fast technology win.
Your Core Responsibilities
Architect, design, and deploy FPGA-based solutions for parsing market data and executing trades with ultra-low latency.
Collaborate with traders and developers to translate strategy requirements into real-time hardware logic.
Analyse and optimize system performance at every level—from transceiver tuning to logic layout.
Develop and maintain a robust simulation and testing framework to ensure system reliability.
Monitor and improve FPGA performance in live trading environments through benchmarking and profiling.
Explore emerging technologies and bring new ideas to continually sharpen our hardware advantage.
Your Skills and Experience:
3+ years’ experience in financial markets, exchange protocols (FIX, OUCH, ITCH), or co-designing FPGA and software systems.
BS/MS/PhD in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or related field.
Extensive experience with FPGA or ASIC technologies, including proficiency in either VHDL, Verilog, or SystemVerilog.
Strong engineering skills in Python, C++ or C.
Solid understanding of digital design principles, including pipelining, flow control, and clock domain crossing.
Experience with FPGA development tools and toolchains (Vivado, Quartus, Synplify, etc.).
Proven ability to optimize for low latency and high throughput in production systems.
Familiarity with networking protocols (e.g., Ethernet, TCP, UDP).
About Us
IMC is a research-driven trading firm where quantitative modeling, machine learning, and engineering shape how modern markets are traded. A stabilizing force in markets since 1989, we provide liquidity across trading venues, delivering the best outcome in value and risk management to investors. Using our own technology and capital, we build proprietary systems and algorithms that operate across global markets. Our researchers, traders, and engineers work as a collective, combining rapid experimentation, advanced infrastructure, and real-time feedback to turn insight into execution and execution into advantage.

Source: IMC careers (Greenhouse)