There's a Lot of Hiring Going on in Electronic Trading

After a yearlong souping up of its equities electronic client solutions group, JPMorgan finally appears ready to duke it out with the competition. Given the comments of the group's management, it seems likely that they'll be in the market for even more tech, project management and business development folks. Indeed, the equities electronic client solutions group's had pretty strong hiring over the past year.

While this push might seem baffling, given the recent cutbacks in back office jobs at JPMorgan, it's clear that the emphasis is on the algo and electronic trading side of the business. And, that sort of push isn't only going on at JPMorgan. All of the big banks and tech providers, ECNs and related firms are focusing on electronic trading technology upgrades, so expect hiring in the space to stay strong.

ECNs are busy making their electronic trading platforms top of the line. Instinet recently completed a build out of its Canadian electronic trading. Bloomberg is rolling out a number of new algos, with a big push behind global equity portfolio trading. Bloomberg is also on the prowl for pros on the FX electronic trading sales side and fixed income electronic trading sales, software and support end.

As always, tech firms and IT professionals are benefitting from the continued growth in electronic trading. Trading platform providers - the ones servicing dealers and customers - are actively looking for project managers. Individuals need to be customer-friendly, have deep market knowledge, and be experienced in e-trading platforms as they deal with trading and tech support, integration, business development and more. Look for those with specific expertise on the FX and fixed income side of electronic trading to be in serious demand.