Relocating to Mumbai: The experience of two colleagues in India’s financial capital

What first sparked your interest in a career with IMC?

Jurjen: I studied aerospace engineering for my bachelor and master degree. But in the aerospace industry everything takes a long time, whereas I was looking for a job that would be exciting on a daily basis and I could make an impact from day one. Trading seemed like the perfect fit. I first heard about IMC from a friend of a friend who worked here. I am a naturally competitive person and enjoy a challenge, so it sounded right up my street. I signed up for the business course, enjoyed it, and then applied for a graduate trader role.

Frederik: I knew I wanted to do some sort of engineering job in high school, though I didn’t really consider going into software specifically until my first year at university, when I took a course in software and electrical logic gates and loved it. I first met IMC at a careers event in my second year, where I came away with an IMC water bottle. I wasn’t 100% sure what industry I wanted to work in, though I did want to combine my two degrees in finance and software. In my final year I was browsing internships and discovered IMC’s program was highly rated. I glanced at the water bottle on my shelf and realised it was meant to be!

You both began your careers with IMC in different locations – where were you based and what did you focus on there?

Jurjen: I was based in our Amsterdam office for two years, where I worked on the Brazil desk on market making equity options. While on the Brazil team, I helped transition the set-up, which was then split across a relatively large group of people, to a more scalable framework.

Frederik: Meanwhile I was in Sydney working on the strategy team, which is responsible for more of the pricing and analysis side of our system. My particular focus was on the analysis part, ensuring we can provide traders like Jurjen with the most accurate and up-to-date information, enabling them to make the trades they want.

When and why did you make the move to Mumbai?

Jurjen: I’d been keeping up with the news about the IMC Mumbai office through our internal communications channels and via my friends on the India desk in Amsterdam. I thought it was a really exciting opportunity to help grow a new office in a booming market, and would be an adventure for me and my girlfriend, so I decided to volunteer. I relocated at the end of February 2023 and haven’t looked back!

Frederik: I moved to Mumbai not long after Jurjen, in April 2023. The Sydney office was pitching the opportunity and I was keen to make the most of IMC’s global status by doing a stint in another office. India felt like a really interesting place to move to, where I’d have the opportunity to immerse myself in another culture. I was similarly excited by the fact that India is a growing market and there is an opportunity to make a big impact in the office, as it was still relatively small then, though it’s expanding fast now.

What have been your personal highlights of your experience so far?

Jurjen: It’s difficult to pick a specific moment! I really like the culture here as a whole. Everyone is so friendly, there are so many places to travel within India and in neighbouring countries. And the food is second-to-none. Of course, it’s difficult being far away from family and friends, but I’ve found the people here are very caring and really look after each other, so I feel at home.

Frederik: Yeah, I’d have to agree on the food. Some of the cuisines I’ve tried here have been out of this world! Being able to explore Asia on the weekends has been incredible, and we’ve made local friends as well as cemented friendships with other IMCers who joined the office from overseas. For me, being exposed to diverse cultures is also a really valuable lesson for my professional development. As an example, in Australia we tend to give feedback more softly, and people are open to receiving it in group scenarios. Whereas in India, people have asked me to be more direct with my feedback in a one-to-one setting. That’s really useful to know, as being sensitive to different approaches is crucial when you work in a global company.

What are your day-to-day responsibilities in the Mumbai office?

Jurjen: As a trader, my main responsibility is ensuring our operations are running smoothly. This involves working closely with the developers and engineers to keep our systems up and running, make quick decisions when things happen in the market, and coming up with ideas for new features. I work very closely with the Tech team every day, from troubleshooting issues that impact trading in real time, to testing and rolling out our new features.

Frederik: No day is ever the same for me, as I’ve moved into a more generalist role with a wide range of responsibilities. I deal with the huge data load we see in India due to the sheer amount of trades, making sure our systems can keep up. I also helped set up our spreads trading desk for both SSO and Index. So much of what I do is India-specific due to the market semantics, which makes working on optimising these projects pretty exciting. I guess the one thing that's the same every day is that I’m in communication with the traders, agreeing on solutions and helping to execute them.

Do you have any advice for graduates thinking about applying to IMC Mumbai?

Jurjen: IMC is a great place to work. If you’re someone who can take responsibility and show initiative, you’ll have a lot of freedom to carve out your own career path. The Mumbai office is growing really fast. You’ll get to work on – and own – cool new projects on a daily basis.

Frederik: I couldn’t agree more. If you want to work in a fast-paced, multi-cultural environment, IMC is the place for you. In Mumbai, everyone is excited about the future and it’s motivating to be contributing towards these fantastic results we’re seeing. Plus, there’s the opportunity to live and work overseas – that’s a pretty stand-out combination!

Interested in a career with IMC?