Careers Talk February 2026
Breaking into quant finance is highly competitive, and interview success requires more than just technical expertise. This talk recording will demystify the quant interview process, giving you practical tools and confidence to navigate even the most challenging questions.
Brian discusses real-world scenarios, shares common pitfalls to avoid, and reveals what separates good candidates from exceptional ones. Whether you’re preparing for your first quant role or looking to advance your career, this session will equip you with actionable strategies to make a lasting impression.
Speaker Bio
Brian Cullinan
Brian Cullinan is a search consultant at Capital Markets Recruitment, specializing in quantitative research recruitment across EMEA, APAC and the US for hedge funds and proprietary trading firms. He has five years’ experience in front-office search and a track record of successfully executing searches across most major asset classes. Prior to joining Capital Markets Brian he was a consultant with Dartmouth Partners in London.
Careers Talk November 2025
Discover what a typical day entails for a Risk Manager, including daily tasks, challenges, and collaborative efforts with various teams. Dr. Girish Mamtani will discuss his career journey, offering insights into the experiences and skills that paved his way to becoming a successful Risk Manager. Learn about the essential skills required for the role, such as critical thinking and attention to detail, and how the Certificate in Quantitative Finance (CQF) can enhance these abilities.
Speaker Bio
Dr. Souratosh Khan
Souratosh Khan holds a PhD in Physics from the University of Arizona where he studied optoelectronic processes in organic solar cells. He has also worked as a post-doctoral researcher at the School of Information, University of Arizona, studying statistical methods to quantify uncertainty, graph algorithms for model analysis, and stochastic models to predict food insecurity. He currently works as a data scientist within the Commercial & Investment Banking division at JP Morgan where he uses traditional NLP models as well as LLMs to solve problems in operational risk management. He has been at the forefront of developing AI/ML products that assess the impact of regulations and other legal artifacts on the bank’s businesses. He has also worked in equity research, designing recommender systems for portfolio construction by analyzing the behavioral and investing patterns of portfolio managers. He is an alumnus of the CQF program graduating in 2024 and the recipient of the Wilmott Award.
Careers Talk October 2025
Discover what a typical day entails for a Data Scientist, including daily tasks, challenges, and collaborative efforts with various teams. Dr. Souratosh Khan discusses his career journey, offering insights into the experiences and skills that paved his way to becoming a successful Data Scientist. Learn about the essential skills required for the role, such as critical thinking and attention to detail, and how the Certificate in Quantitative Finance (CQF) can enhance these abilities.
Speaker Bio
Dr. Souratosh Khan
Souratosh Khan holds a PhD in Physics from the University of Arizona where he studied optoelectronic processes in organic solar cells. He has also worked as a post-doctoral researcher at the School of Information, University of Arizona, studying statistical methods to quantify uncertainty, graph algorithms for model analysis, and stochastic models to predict food insecurity. He currently works as a data scientist within the Commercial & Investment Banking division at JP Morgan where he uses traditional NLP models as well as LLMs to solve problems in operational risk management. He has been at the forefront of developing AI/ML products that assess the impact of regulations and other legal artifacts on the bank’s businesses. He has also worked in equity research, designing recommender systems for portfolio construction by analyzing the behavioral and investing patterns of portfolio managers. He is an alumnus of the CQF program graduating in 2024 and the recipient of the Wilmott Award.
Video Description
Careers Talk July 2025
This session aims to equip quantitative finance professionals with skills to excel in communication during high-stakes scenarios.
Speaker Bio
Ed Ma
Ed Ma is an enterprise leader with deep experience driving innovation across capital markets, technology platforms, and cross-functional operations. As COO for Bloomberg’s Sell Side OMS business, he leads strategic planning, product delivery, and execution across global trading workflows. Previously, he headed Bloomberg’s BVAL Municipal Pricing team, where he advanced algorithmic pricing, expanded asset class coverage, and aligned global teams across product, engineering, and go-to-market functions. Ed brings a pragmatic, data-driven, and outcomes-focused approach to enterprise product leadership.
Video Description
Careers Talk June 2025
With specialised skills that are in high demand around the world, quant finance professionals are often forgiven a multitude of mistakes on their resumes. From foundational elements such as incorrect formatting and length, through to presenting complex academic research in an unappealing or uninformative way, these errors can limit opportunity and advancement.
Having a top-quality resume can be the difference between getting a job, and getting the job you really want. As a crucial piece of personal marketing, it is particularly important for those looking to move into more senior roles, or find work in a new market.
Join Brian Cullinan as he provides unique insights into building an impactful resume. Brian will outline common mistakes to avoid, provide useful hints and tips on developing an engaging document, and offer some advice on standing out from the crowd during the recruitment process.
Speaker Bio
Brian Cullinan
Brian Cullinan is a search consultant at Capital Markets Recruitment, specializing in quantitative research recruitment across EMEA, APAC and the US for hedge funds and proprietary trading firms. He has five years’ experience in front-office search and a track record of successfully executing searches across most major asset classes. Prior to joining Capital Markets Brian he was a consultant with Dartmouth Partners in London.
Video Description
Careers Talk March 2025
Discover what a typical day entails for a portfolio manager, including daily tasks, challenges, and collaborative efforts with various teams like research and risk management. Michael will discuss his career journey, offering insights into the experiences and skills that paved his way to becoming a successful portfolio manager. Learn about the essential skills required for the role, such as critical thinking and attention to detail, and how the Certificate in Quantitative Finance (CQF) can enhance these abilities.
Speaker Bio
Dr. Michael Althof
Michael brings a unique skillset in investment management including ETF capital markets workflows, quant finance and AI, blockchain and digitalization as well as sustainable private asset markets. He has twenty years of investment experience, first as fund manager for PIMCO Real Return inflation-protected and inflation response portfolios including commodities, and also as EMEA team leader for PIMCO Europe ETF Capital Markets. He moved to Luxembourg in 2022 to build out the Portfolio Management and ETF Capital Market structures for Alternative Investment Funds at Royalton Partners, before launching his own company in 2023. Michael holds a Master’s degree from the Ecole Supérieure de Commerce de Paris, focused on financial maths, and a Doctorate Degree in mathematical statistics at the Humboldt University in Berlin, focusing on AI approaches to investment management and blockchain technology. He is also a Certificate in Quantitative Finance (CQF) designation holder.
Video Description
Careers Talk November 2024
Our expert panel explore not only what professionals need to succeed in quantitative finance now but what skills and knowledge they might need in future. They discuss global and regional trends in the field, see how this impacts organizations and what they can do to maintain access to pipelines of talent in an increasingly competitive environment. They also look at the CQF qualification and how it is evolving with the changes in the skill set demanded of quant finance professionals today and in the future.
Speaker Bios
Ekaterina Palaeva
Ekaterina (Katya) Palaeva is an Executive Director in Valuation Control in Finance based in London. Within this group Katya has global responsibilities for FID Model Control and Macro products Valuation Control. She joined Morgan Stanley in 2019 coming from Quantitative Advisory Group in EY, where Katya led the UK Derivatives Valuation Centre, managed several consultancy projects on model reviews and model risk management. Katya holds master’s degrees in applied mathematics and computer science teaching, she is certified Financial Risk Manager (FRM) and holds Certificate in Quantitative Finance (CQF).
Mohammed Shayan
Mohammed Shayan works as a Enterprise Quant Solutions specialist. For the last 15 years he has worked with buy-side/Sellside customers across EMEA region consulting on systems and technology optimisation. Mohammed Shayan has held various roles at Bloomberg. Previously he worked as an analyst at Ernst & Young and ABN AMRO Bank.
Dr. Randeep Gug
Dr. Randeep Gug is the Managing Director of the CQF Institute and the Certificate in Quantitative Finance (CQF). Prior to joining Fitch Learning, Randeep worked in a variety of roles. He spent five years working in the Equities division at Salomon Smith Barney and later traded futures and options on the Indian National Stock Exchange (NSE). More recently he has spent time teaching mathematics at all levels. He is a qualified teacher, holds a 1st class honours degree and a PhD for research in semiconductor physics. He is a CQF Alumnus, achieving a distinction on the programme and his current interests are based around improving and promoting the teaching and learning of Quant Finance.
Payal Biyani
Payal Biyani is a Vice President in the model risk management group for CIB trading models at JP Morgan Chase, She has a total work experience of 14 years and has worked across various risk stripes ranging from market risk, counterparty credit risk, liquidity risk and model risk. Currently, at JPMC, she leads the model risk management team for Equity derivatives in India. She holds a masters degree in Economics, is a certified Financial Risk Manager (FRM) and holds Certificate in Quantitative Finance (CQF).
Video Description
Careers Talk September 2024
Join Siddhesh Acharekar for an insightful online session where we delve into the world of a Quantitative Auditor. Siddhesh will outline the day-to-day activities of the role, the typical career backgrounds and career journeys within quantitative auditing, and the quant finance skills and knowledge that are beneficial to the role.
Speaker Bio
Siddhesh Acharekar
Siddhesh Acharekar holds the CQF qualification and FRM with Master of Management Studies specializing in Finance. He has almost twelve years of experience spanning across trading, risk and quant consulting for leading banks across US, UK, Middle East, and Asia around areas namely Option Trading, Market and Model Risk, FRTB, Stress Testing and Basel regulations.
