Data Sourcing Expert - eFinancialCareers : Job Details

ABOUT CFM

Capital Fund Management (CFM) is a global alternatives manager and pioneer in the field of quantitative trading applied to capital markets globally. Founded in 1991, the company boasts a 30+ year track record. CFM manages $13.5bn of AUM in a large set of quantitative strategies which trade liquid instruments across global markets including futures, equities, bonds, options, foreign exchange and various derivatives.

ABOUT THE ROLE

The data sourcing team represents the tip of the spear for CFM’s data initiatives.

The team is responsible for identifying interesting datasets, providing the first check as to their potential and uncovering issues, initiating and coordinating trials, and finally negotiating their procurement and on-boarding.

The Data Sourcing expert role reports to the Head of Data Sourcing and will be based in London.

Your initiatives as data sourcing expert: 

• You will own the discovery of new datasets, from sources both familiar and new;
• You will attend data conferences in various locations globally, lead data sourcing initiatives in new geographies, and conduct desk research into interesting potential sources of valuable data;
• You will maintain relationships with large existing providers in order to remain fully up to date with their latest products, while also sifting through the vast quantity of smaller providers in search of potential value;
• You will seek new unique sources of data, with inventiveness and persistence likely to be core skills needed for the task. In time the successful candidate will become increasingly involved with commercial negotiations.

SKILLSET REQUIREMENTS/QUALIFICATIONS

• You are a motivated individual with excellent communication skills, who can drill down to the most important information in a presented offering, while keeping an eye on the bigger picture;
• Your experience in the financial sector, your understanding of financial markets and the factors that drive market movements will be highly appreciated;
• You are comfortable with data, showing a demonstrable understanding of concepts like: structured vs unstructured data, what is a time series, and a basic understanding of analytical tools for extracting insight, such as machine learning;
• You are recognized as a creative thinker who can leverage extensive existing knowledge to conceive of new sources of data that have not previously been explored;
• You have a detective’s nose for an interesting fact, and a dogged determination to chase a lead to its conclusion;
• Relevant experience in the Sales and Trading department of an investment bank could be of particular interest;
• Your familiarity with the alternative data space is a large plus.

MORE ABOUT CFM

CFM is home to 300 individuals and is headquartered in Paris with additional offices in London and New York City. The firm is owned by its five board members and employees, with a minority stake held by Dyal Capital. Despite their leading status, CFM is constantly innovating and fosters a creative, dynamic, and entrepreneurial environment. They possess a unique research lab with a large team of 50+ PHd researchers and of 100+ IT engineers constantly testing and creating strategies. This scientific team is supported by an experienced corporate team.

Research and technology are the key enablers of the investment process at CFM, which involve creating strategies derived from analysing large quantities (petabytes per annum) of data, allowing trading decisions to be executed in a highly systematic and disciplined way. They look for statistically significant patterns from which they create investment strategies that are rigorously tested before being implemented by algorithms that control the buying and selling of financial instruments.

CFM also has strong links to a number of universities and their researchers seek to contribute to the advancement of knowledge in finance and economics by lecturing and regularly publishing academic articles. CFM has a focus on ESG and this permeates across all functions and policies. The business brought in a head of ESG in 2019, who has extensive experience in the space and is passionate about incorporating ESG into the business. CFM launched their first dedicated sustainable fund in late 2021 as a UCITS and is working on launching an offshore version.

CFM fosters a culture of collaboration, humility and innovation. Individuals work towards shared goals and excel together everyone is encouraged to share their opinion. CFM has a track record for long tenures. The business values retaining talent and individuals’ career progression. It is committed to providing a motivating environment where everyone can progress and be challenged. There is a lot of internal mobility and individuals are supported if they look to pivot to new roles or relocate within the firm.

While the business is headquartered in France, the culture is international. With more than 30 different nationalities, including the five partners themselves who are from different countries. Many individuals in the HQ don’t speak French; CFM’s committees and all marketing and documentation are in English.

The firm regularly organises team socials and makes sure to unite its whole team several times per year for cocktails, lunches, or family days. Individuals are also able to travel and work from the Paris HQ when they would like to.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES STATEMENT

We are continuously striving to be an equal opportunity employer and we prohibit any discrimination based on sex, disability, origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, race, or religion. We believe that our diversity, breadth of experience, and multiple points of view are among the leading factors in our success. CFM is a signatory of the Women Empowerment Principles

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