If you’re a software engineer looking for a job at a fun quantitative hedge fund which lets you build small robots in your spare time and has rooms for strumming guitars and playing drums, Two Sigma has long been your home. The newly filed results for Two Sigma International in London suggest there are financial advantages to hanging out there too.
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Two Sigma International employed 93 people in London last year. As the chart below shows, this was seven more than in 2022 and more than half those people were in engineering.
As Two Sigma International increased its London headcount, it also increased its pay. In 2022 average pay per head was £286k. Last year, that rose to £345k ($436k).
While pay for the rank and file rose, so too did pay for Two Sigma’s highest earners. The highest paid director earned £718k in 2022 and £1.8m in 2023. The fund said one of its biggest challenges is retaining staff and that it needs to spend heavily on compensation. It also said it expects its cost base to increase in 2024.
Rising pay reflected rising profits. Two Sigma made £2.9m in profits in 2022 and £3.4m in 2023. Revenues went from £38m to £49m over the same period.
People seem to like working for Two Sigma. Recent reviews on Blind say that the fund has excellent snacks, a good homeworking policy and chilled workers.
Two Sigma has been subject to dramas involving its fractious founders. John Overdeck and David Siegel “disagree on the authorities, responsibilities and compensation for their own roles as well as a range of senior executives, including chief investment officers,” according to regulatory filings. Some employees seem to have left as a result.
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