Traders speaks with Sabah Siddique, Trading Software Analyst at Instinet, who won Rising Star at the 2023 Markets Choice Awards.

Briefly describe your background and career to date.

I’ve been at Instinet for almost three years now, having joined shortly after I graduated college in 2020. While I was still in college studying Computer Science, I completed two summer internships with Instinet. It’s been great because I’ve been working with the same SOR team all throughout my time here, and that’s allowed me to understand our product in a better way. Since my background is in technology, the biggest learning curve I faced was understanding the finance side, specifically learning trading concepts, rules, and strategies.

What keeps you motivated?

The people I work with keep me motivated. My manager and teammates are just great to work with, and I always want to see our team succeed. Additionally, knowing that our product, the SOR, is such an integral part of Instinet’s business is motivating too. The SOR algorithm is incredibly complex and impactful. It’s fascinating to learn how it operates and  brainstorm ways to further optimize its functionalities.

Who have been the main influences in your career?

My biggest influence in my career has been my father. He has always had a keen interest in economics, finance, and technology.  And, being a natural teacher, he’s often shared his knowledge and opinions on these topics with me. Having worked in fintech himself, he’s been educating me, since I was in high school, on things like the inner workings of the stock market and software development best practices. Both he and my mother were working in technology when I was trying to decide what college major to select, and I soon discovered why they enjoyed it so much.

Describe a challenging time in your career, and how you overcame it. 

A major challenge I think we’ve all faced was the pandemic and remote working. Although I’ve grown to appreciate working from home, I found it difficult in the beginning while learning new systems and processes, only communicating with people over scheduled video calls. I had to learn to come out of my shell to ask questions, no matter how small or obvious they seem. I’m very lucky that everyone I’ve spoken to at Instinet is so nice and willing to help, which made things much easier for me as a newcomer.

What would be your advice for someone starting a career in finance/fintech?

I would say, be prepared and willing to learn continuously. Fintech in particular is an ever-evolving field and it will be to your advantage to keep up with the current trends. I would also say to keep an open mind as you venture into the field; you may start out in one area, like algorithmic trading, and learn that another area, like cloud computing, suits you better. There are many resources available online that allow you to  get a glimpse of what the different areas look like in practical settings.