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Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Trade Surveillance Analyst

💰 $90,000 - $150,000

ComplianceFinanceRisk ManagementAnalytics

🎯 Role Definition

This role requires a highly analytical and detail-oriented Trade Surveillance Analyst to join our dynamic Compliance team. In this pivotal role, you will be on the front lines of safeguarding market integrity by monitoring our firm's trading activities for any signs of market abuse, manipulation, or violations of regulatory requirements. You will leverage sophisticated surveillance technology and your deep understanding of financial markets to investigate alerts, conduct in-depth analyses, and report on suspicious activities. This is a unique opportunity to apply your investigative mindset and technical skills to protect the firm and contribute to a fair and transparent market environment. If you are passionate about compliance, data analysis, and the intricacies of global financial markets, we want to hear from you.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

  • Compliance Associate
  • Data Analyst / Financial Analyst
  • Junior Trader / Trading Assistant
  • Paralegal (Financial Services)

Advancement To:

  • Senior Trade Surveillance Analyst
  • Compliance Manager / Head of Surveillance
  • AML Investigations Manager
  • Regulatory Affairs Specialist

Lateral Moves:

  • Risk Analyst
  • E-Communications Surveillance Analyst
  • Forensic Accountant
  • Data Scientist (Compliance)

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

  • Conduct daily, real-time, and post-trade surveillance of trading activities across various asset classes (equities, fixed income, derivatives, FX) to detect potential violations of market regulations and internal policies.
  • Perform in-depth analysis and investigation of alerts generated by automated surveillance systems (e.g., Nasdaq SMARTS, Actimize, Bloomberg) to identify and assess potential market abuse, such as insider trading, market manipulation, and front-running.
  • Prepare comprehensive, well-documented investigation reports that detail the analysis, findings, and recommended actions for review by senior management, Legal, and Compliance leadership.
  • Escalate potentially suspicious trading activities and material findings to senior compliance staff, business line management, and, when appropriate, regulatory bodies in a timely and structured manner.
  • Collaborate directly with traders, portfolio managers, and technology teams to understand trading strategies, clarify trading activity, and resolve surveillance-related inquiries.
  • Assist in the development, implementation, and ongoing tuning of surveillance system parameters, scenarios, and alert logic to enhance detection capabilities and reduce false positives.
  • Stay abreast of evolving regulatory landscapes, including rules from the SEC, FINRA, CFTC, and international bodies like ESMA (MAR), and integrate new requirements into the surveillance framework.
  • Respond to regulatory inquiries, examinations, and internal audits by gathering required trading data, preparing detailed responses, and presenting investigative findings to regulators.
  • Perform forensic reviews and complex ad-hoc analyses of large trading datasets using tools like SQL, Python, or advanced Excel to identify hidden patterns and emerging risks.
  • Manage the end-to-end lifecycle of an investigation, from initial alert detection and data gathering to case closure and reporting.
  • Analyze and review electronic communications (e-comms) and voice recordings associated with flagged trading activity to provide context and evidence for investigations.
  • Synthesize complex market data, order book information, and news events to build a comprehensive narrative for each investigation.

Secondary Functions

  • Contribute to the creation and maintenance of departmental policies, procedures, and control documentation related to trade surveillance and market conduct.
  • Develop and deliver targeted training sessions for front-office personnel on market abuse regulations, best practices, and internal compliance policies.
  • Participate in User Acceptance Testing (UAT) for new surveillance system functionalities, model upgrades, and data source integrations to ensure they meet business and regulatory requirements.
  • Conduct periodic risk assessments of the firm's business activities to identify potential market abuse risks and recommend enhancements to the control environment.
  • Utilize data visualization tools like Tableau or Power BI to create insightful dashboards and reports that communicate surveillance metrics and trends to stakeholders.
  • Liaise with the Anti-Money Laundering (AML) team to investigate cases where market abuse may be linked to financial crime or money laundering activities.
  • Provide subject matter expertise on trade surveillance during the onboarding of new products, trading systems, or business lines.
  • Engage in special projects and firm-wide initiatives aimed at strengthening the overall compliance and control framework.
  • Proactively identify gaps in surveillance coverage and propose solutions for monitoring new or unmonitored trading activities.
  • Maintain a detailed and organized case management file for all investigations, ensuring a clear and defensible audit trail of the surveillance process.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

  • Expertise in using automated trade surveillance systems such as Nasdaq SMARTS, Actimize, Fidessa, or Bloomberg Surveillance.
  • Strong proficiency in SQL for querying and manipulating large datasets for investigative purposes.
  • Advanced Microsoft Excel skills, including PivotTables, VLOOKUPs, macros, and complex formula creation.
  • In-depth knowledge of financial markets, including various asset classes (equities, options, futures, fixed income, FX) and complex trading strategies.
  • Thorough understanding of relevant market abuse regulations, such as MAR, MiFID II, Dodd-Frank, and rules from regulatory bodies like the SEC, FINRA, and CFTC.
  • Experience with data analysis and visualization tools like Tableau, Power BI, or QlikView.
  • Familiarity with programming languages such as Python or R for data analysis is a significant plus.

Soft Skills

  • Exceptional analytical, critical thinking, and problem-solving abilities with a keen eye for detail.
  • Superior written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to articulate complex issues clearly and concisely to diverse audiences.
  • High level of integrity, discretion, and ethical standards, with the ability to handle sensitive and confidential information.
  • Strong organizational and time-management skills, capable of managing multiple investigations and deadlines simultaneously under pressure.
  • A proactive, self-motivated, and inquisitive mindset with a strong desire for continuous learning and professional development.
  • Collaborative and team-oriented with strong interpersonal skills to work effectively across different business and support functions.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

  • Bachelor's Degree.

Preferred Education:

  • Master’s Degree or professional certifications (e.g., CFE, ACAMS, FINRA Series 7/63).

Relevant Fields of Study:

  • Finance
  • Economics
  • Law / Pre-Law
  • Business Administration
  • Computer Science / Data Analytics

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range: 2-7 years of relevant experience in trade surveillance, compliance, risk management, or a related field within the financial services industry.

Preferred: Direct, hands-on experience in a trade surveillance role at a broker-dealer, investment bank, hedge fund, or asset manager.

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