JOB DESCRIPTION

You can help conduct research to build quantitative financial models and portfolio analytics that help managing most of the money of the world’s largest asset manager. You can bring all yourself to the job. From the top of the firm down we embrace the values, identities and ideas brought by our employees.
We are looking for curious people with a strong background in data science, quantitative research and machine learning, have awesome problem-solving skills, insatiable appetite for learning and innovation, adding to BlackRock’s vibrant research culture.
If any of this excites you, we are looking to expand our team. We currently have Data Scientist role with the AFE Liquidity Trading and Investment (LTI) Team in London, UK. The securities market is undergoing a massive transformation as the industry is embracing machine learning to help evolve the investment process. Pioneering this journey at BlackRock, the team has better deliver applied ML/AI investment analytics to help both BlackRock and Aladdin clients achieve scale through automation while safeguarding alpha generation. The LTI team combines ML methodology and technology skills with deep subject matter expertise in fixed income, equity, and multi-asset markets, and the buyside investment process.
We are building next generation liquidity, security similarity and pricing models leveraging our expertise in quantitative research, data science and machine learning. The models we build use innovative machine learning approaches, have real practical value and are used by traders and portfolio managers alike. Our models use cutting edge econometric/statistical methods and tools. The models themselves have real practical value and are used by traders, portfolio managers and risk managers representing different investment styles (fundamental vs. quantitative) and across different investment horizons. Research is conducted predominantly in Python and Scala, and implemented into production by a separate, dedicated team of developers. These models have a huge footprint of usage across the entire Aladdin client base, and so we place special emphasis on scalability and ensuring adherence to BlackRock’s rigorous standards of model governance and control.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• B.Tech / B.E. / M.Sc. degree in a quantitative discipline (Mathematics, Physics, Computer Science, Finance or similar area). MS/M.Tech. / PhD is a plus.
• Strong background in Mathematics, Statistics, Probability, Linear Algebra
• Knowledgeable about data mining, data analytics, data modeling
• Experience with data engineering tools and technologies (e.g., Apache Spark, Hadoop).
• Strong understanding of relational and non-relational databases (e.g., SQL, NoSQL).
• Proficiency in scripting languages for data manipulation and automation (e.g., Python, Scala).
• Experience working with cloud platforms for data storage and processing (e.g., Azure, GCP).
• Ability to work independently and efficiently in a fast-paced and team-oriented environment.
• Previous experience or knowledge in fixed income market and market liquidity is not required but a big plus.
  For professionals with no prior financial industry experience, this position is a unique opportunity to gain in-depth knowledge of the asset management process in a world-class organization.

BACKGROUND AND RESPONSIBILITIES

We are looking to hire a Data Scientist with 4+ years’ experience to join AFE LTI team focusing on Trading and Liquidity to work closely with other data scientists/researchers to support Risk Mangers, Portfolio Managers and Traders. We build cutting edge liquidity analytics using a wide range of ML algos and a broad array of technologies (Python, Scala, Spark/Hadoop, GCP, Azure). This role is a great opportunity to work closely with the Portfolio Managers, Risk Managers and Trading team, spanning areas such as:

• Design, develop, and maintain data pipelines to extract, transform, and load data from various sources into our data warehouse/lake.
• Work with data scientists and analysts to understand data needs and design appropriate data models.
• Implement data quality checks and ensure the accuracy and consistency of data throughout the processing pipeline.
• Perform analysis of large data sets comprising of market data, trading data and derived analytics.
• Design and develop model surveillance framework.
• Automate data processing tasks using scripting languages (e.g., Python, Scala) and orchestration tools (e.g., Airflow, Luigi).
• Utilize cloud-based data platforms (e.g., GCP, Azure, etc.) to manage and process large datasets efficiently.
• Implement the ML models/analytics for Trading/Liquidity and integrate into Aladdin analytical system in accordance with BlackRock’s model governance policy.