Optiver Amsterdam

Core Business

Optiver is a global market maker. By adding liquidity to the global exchanges and taking advantage of relative pricing differences between related securities, we narrow the spread which benefits pension funds, institutions, retail investors and all other market participants. By doing so we add value for the investing public. We concentrate on understanding and simplifying the relationships between financial products, then making the most competitive markets in them.

Simply, we trade on the financial markets using our own capital and at our own risk.

We are active in a range of increasingly sophisticated arbitrage activities, so constant innovation is crucial. The transition to electronic trading means we no longer need a physical presence on the trading floor. In theory, anybody, anywhere in the world, can quote buying and selling prices for options.

Despite the large scale of our business, we take on comparatively little risk, as trading requires a superior understanding of the factors influencing securities, derivatives and other prices and an ability to respond swiftly to them.

We try to remain neutral to market direction at all times, and base our trading philosophy on immediate hedging of our positions. This approach has made us profitable through every global market crisis since 1986.

IT is key to making the best market. The origin of an order is irrelevant to us. The only decisive factor is the speed with which an order is received. This has led to an increase in global volumes and a need for extensive investments and development in IT. Today, our offices employ one to two IT developers for every one trader.