Polymarket

Quantitative Risk Analyst — Derivatives & Clearing at Polymarket (New York, NY)

Polymarket· New York, NY·

Role details

Work type
Onsite
Employment
Full-Time

Job description

ABOUT POLYMARKET

Polymarket is the world's largest prediction market platform. We enable individuals to express views on real-world events by trading on outcomes across politics, economics, sports, culture, and current affairs. Built as a peer-to-peer marketplace with no centralized "house," Polymarket aggregates diverse opinions into transparent, market-based probabilities that reflect collective expectations about the future.

We're growing fast — both in terms of volume ($21B traded in 2025) and adoption as an alternative news source. Our ambition is to become a ubiquitous beacon of truth in global media and we need your help adding fuel to the fire.

ABOUT THE ROLE

Polymarket is hiring a Quantitative Risk Analyst to design and implement enterprise-scale risk models at the heart of our clearing operation. You'll own models for market risk, volatility and correlation of derivatives, stress testing, and automated liquidation — the systems that keep the platform solvent and users protected in fast-moving markets.

This is a hands-on role: you'll be building models in production code, not just specifying them. We expect you to work fluently with AI tools for development and research — and to be the skeptic in the room, pressure-testing AI-generated models and code against well-established risk frameworks before anything ships.

WHAT YOU'LL DO

  • Design, implement, and maintain enterprise-scale risk models covering market risk, margin, and counterparty exposure for a clearing organization
  • Build volatility and correlation models for derivatives, including calibration, backtesting, and ongoing model validation
  • Develop and run stress-testing frameworks: historical scenarios, hypothetical shocks, and reverse stress tests
  • Design and tune auto-liquidation logic — trigger thresholds, liquidation waterfalls, and safeguards against cascading liquidations
  • Use AI tools extensively to accelerate model development, coding, and research — and rigorously validate AI outputs against established risk models before deployment
  • Monitor model performance in production, investigate breaks, and iterate quickly
  • Partner with engineering, trading, and product teams to embed risk controls into platform architecture
  • Document model assumptions, limitations, and validation results to an audit-ready standard

WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR

  • 5–7 years of quantitative risk experience at a clearinghouse, exchange, prime broker, trading firm, or similar
  • Proven expertise designing and implementing risk models at enterprise scale — production systems, not just research prototypes
  • Deep experience modeling volatility, correlation, option skews, and option pricing at scale for trad-fi derivatives, perpetuals, and fully collateralized event contracts
  • Hands-on experience with market risk modeling, stress testing, and auto-liquidation mechanics in a clearing context
  • Strong fluency with AI-assisted development and coding, paired with the judgment to pressure-test AI outputs against well-established risk models and catch what looks plausible but is wrong
  • Expert-level Python (NumPy, pandas, SciPy; solid software engineering practices)
  • Advanced degree in a quantitative field (math, statistics, physics, financial engineering, CS) or equivalent experience
  • Strong mathematical foundation in stochastic calculus and linear algebra
  • (Plus) C# and/or C++ for performance-critical or production systems
  • (Plus) Familiarity with crypto market structure, perpetuals, or prediction markets
  • (Plus) Experience with CCP risk frameworks (CPMI-IOSCO PFMI, default management, margin methodology)
  • (Plus) Experience building real-time risk systems

BENEFITS

  • Competitive salary & equity
  • Unlimited PTO
  • Full Health, Vision, & Dental coverage
  • 401k match
  • Hardware setup: new MacBook Pro, big display, & accessories

Why work at Polymarket

  • High‑growth environment: 775% headcount growth in the past year; massive traffic scaling and institutional adoption create exciting challenges.
  • Mission‑driven culture: Build the “information market” that cuts through noise and empowers better decision‑making – a blend of finance, tech, and media.
  • Engineering & data focus: Tech stack includes blockchain, PostgreSQL, ClickHouse, Terraform, Python, and JavaScript; roles span application security, AI ops, data engineering, and Android development.
  • Remote & office flexibility: Headquarters in New York, NY; operates in 20 countries. Hybrid/remote policy not specified but international presence suggests flexibility.
  • Compensation & culture: Employer rating 4.3/5 (perfect scores for work‑life, compensation, culture, career). Senior Accounting Manager salary listed at $225k–$240k (New York). indeed.com
  • Notable perks / engineering culture: Emphasis on decentralized finance, open‑source principles, and “rewarding conviction” – a fast‑paced, intellectually stimulating environment.

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