FPGA Engineer – Ultra-Low Latency Trading Systems | HFT / Prop Desk | Connecticut | London

One of the most competitive proprietary trading firms in Connecticut and London is urgently seeking an FPGA Engineer to join an elite hardware engineering team. You will design, implement, and optimise FPGA-based components for ultra-low latency market data processing, order entry, and risk controls. This is one of the most sought-after technical roles in systematic trading — candidates with the right background are consistently competed for aggressively.

Why This Role Is Different:

You will not be building generic hardware. Every nanosecond matters. You will work at the absolute frontier of trading technology alongside some of the best FPGA and systems engineers in the industry, on live infrastructure that processes billions of dollars of flow daily.

Key Responsibilities:

• Design and implement FPGA logic (VHDL/Verilog/SystemVerilog) for market data feed handlers, order management, and risk gateways

• Optimise critical path timing to achieve sub-microsecond latency on key execution flows

• Collaborate with quant researchers and traders to translate strategy requirements into FPGA implementations

• Develop and maintain simulation testbenches and verification frameworks

• Evaluate new FPGA hardware platforms and network offload technologies (Alveo, Xilinx UltraScale, Solarflare)

• Work with network and systems engineers on co-location and exchange connectivity

• Contribute to kernel bypass and SmartNIC development as required

Required Experience & Qualifications:

• 3–8 years of FPGA development experience with VHDL, Verilog, or SystemVerilog

• Proven track record of latency optimisation in a trading or telecommunications environment

• Deep understanding of network protocols: UDP multicast, TCP, ITCH, OUCH, FIX

• Experience with Xilinx/AMD Vivado toolchain; Intel Quartus a plus

• Understanding of financial exchange protocols and market data feed architecture

• Strong software skills in C++ for host-side tooling and simulation

• Degree in Electronic Engineering, Computer Engineering, or Computer Science from a leading university

What We Offer:

• Market-leading compensation — one of the highest-paying technical roles in London's trading industry

• Work on live production systems with direct trading impact

• Small, elite engineering team with exceptional colleagues

• State-of-the-art co-location hardware and exchange connectivity