Staff Spotlight – Mohammod Rahman

 

 

Our next featured Spartan is Mohammod, our Quantitative Developer with an impressive résumé, charting an impressive journey in the world of commodities at Sparta.

Mohammod’s path from mathematical passion to quantitative finance expertise is a captivating one. His knack for delving into stochastic analysis and leveraging mathematical models is a great asset in our Data Science team.

Join us as we delve deeper into Mohammod’s role, navigating the intersection of mathematics, finance, and technology at Sparta. Let’s explore how his commitment to numerical precision shapes the future of our quantitative initiatives.

HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN WITH THE COMPANY?

I joined Sparta Oct 2022, I have been with Sparta for more than 1 year.

CAN YOU EXPLAIN YOUR ROLE?

As a Quantitative Developer, I craft advanced quantitative models for commodities, employing mathematical techniques, financial expertise, and computer science skills. This role involves delving into the intricacies of oil and gas commodities, often working independently to explore new frontiers in quantitative finance and mathematical modelling. The objective is to anticipate and simulate potential scenarios, both past and future. Hence, a fundamental mindset coupled with innovative vision is crucial in this role.

The best moments in this role lie within collaborating with the other teams to deliver models and to share ideas, thoughts and knowledge.

HOW DID YOU GET STARTED IN THE INDUSTRY?/CAN YOU GIVE ME A RUNDOWN OF YOUR CAREER PATH UP UNTIL THIS POINT?

My career began at Jacob Rothschild Capital Management as a quantitative analyst followed by Castleton Commodities International and then a stint at Penspen. I am a Mathematician at heart, since I studied Mathematics, but I found a great interest in finance and commodities from the onset of my first role. I’ve navigated through roles in hedge funds, commodity trading, and commodity engineering, transitioning from a quant analyst to a software engineer and quant developer. My focus remains on advancing within the commodity industry, aiming to elevate my skill set in mathematics, finance, and computer science to the highest level.

Within mathematical finance, my passion revolves around stochastic analysis, stochastic algorithms, and optimisation. Mentored as a fundamental quant throughout my career, I’ve experienced the financial markets through significant events like Brexit, COVID, inflation, interest rate fluctuations, and various other geopolitical shifts. My enjoyment stems from simulating, modelling, and understanding volatility.

WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE PART OF WORKING AT SPARTA?

My favourite aspect lies within the culture and work ethic. Everyone is very competent at what they do which makes collaboration between teams very exciting. I would describe it as a virtual ‘open-door’ policy whereby you are able to approach any individual for a conversation on ideas and knowledge sharing. As a fully remote company, with team members across the globe, good communication within the company is key.

WHAT ARE YOU MOST PROUD OF IN YOUR CAREER SO FAR?

Throughout my career, I’ve developed numerous quantitative mathematical models that I deeply value. However, my greatest source of pride lies in curating the holistic development of models from inception to implementation. Witnessing users interact and gain value from these models is where I find the most satisfaction.

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE OUR COMPANY CULTURE?

Fast paced, progressive, hard-working mentality, and meritocracy!  

WHAT DO YOU THINK SETS OUR COMPANY APART FROM OTHERS IN THE INDUSTRY?

The ability to lead and curate verticals, good products, with clear vision and foresight. Sparta has a very strong foundation within the commodity industry & commodity community, and it is from this strong foundation that we grew exponentially. I believe it is the highly skilled individuals with great competency that sets us apart from others in the industry.

WHAT’S THE MOST INTERESTING PROJECT YOU’VE WORKED ON HERE AT SPARTA?

The blender project is the most interesting project I’ve worked on. It was my first project with the aim to further optimise a high-level mathematical optimisation problem and its application to commodities. I thoroughly enjoyed the mathematical aspect of this project and working closely with the CTO and COO. The results of which can be seen on the Sparta app today.

I look forward to future possibilities like these!

WHAT PIECE OF ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO YOUR YOUNGER SELF?

Recognising the importance of refining soft skills early in my career, especially as a predominantly technical and hard skill-focused individual, Sparta has provided me with opportunities to lead teams and spearhead projects.

HOW HAS YOUR ROLE EVOLVED SINCE YOU’VE BEEN HERE?

When I initially joined, I operated as the sole member of the Quant team, managing independent ad-hoc projects. As time progressed, I transitioned into a leadership role overseeing other quants. Eventually, our team merged into the Data Science division, focusing on AI applications within Quantitative Finance.

WHAT’S THE MOST VALUABLE LESSON YOU HAVE LEARNED IN YOUR CAREER SO FAR?

The most valuable lesson I have learned is meritocracy within finance and technology. Regardless of background, if you are good at what you do, you will be valued and deserve your praises.

WHAT ARE YOUR GOALS FOR THE NEXT FEW MONTHS/YEARS?

My goals for the future are to:

– Continue creating mathematical models within quantitative finance and commodities.
– Cultivate a new generation of commodity quants

Delve deeper into the frontiers of quantitative finance, mathematics of random systems and AI/ML usage within commodities.

WHAT’S ONE THING YOU WISH PEOPLE KNEW ABOUT YOUR JOB?

The most important aspect of becoming a quant: love Maths.

CAN YOU SHARE A PARTICULAR SKILL OR EXPERTISE YOU’VE DEVELOPED IN THIS ROLE THAT YOU DIDN’T EXPECT TO ACQUIRE?

I have been given the opportunity to hone a few soft skillsets in leading quants and projects. Sparta is amazing in cultivating soft skills, with professional courses available in leadership and management. Different aspects of soft skills are well documented and are encouraged to learn.

IF YOU HAD THREE WISHES, WHAT WOULD THEY BE?

I want the ability to read minds, see the future and time travel.

Stochastic processes are always on my mind, how does something move over time?

WHAT’S THE LAST SONG YOU LISTENED TO?

Ed Sheeran – Beautiful People. I like Ed Sheeran, The Weeknd, and Drake.

WHAT, IF ANYTHING, ARE YOU CURRENTLY BINGE-WATCHING OR READING?

As a member of the London Mathematics Society, it’s not a surprise that I spend most of my time reading Mathematical Papers, whether it’s the LMS non-linear journal or papers by Mathematics of Random Systems.

As a normal person, I am currently binge-watching Billions and Industry. I like Finance related dramas.

WHAT’S ONE THING ON YOUR BUCKET LIST

To climb every mountain in the world. I’ve climbed Snowdon Wales, Lake District England, Ben Nevis Scotland.

Mohammod Rahman is our Quantitative Developer here at Sparta and can be contacted at
mohammod.rahman@spartacommodities.com

---

Sparta is a live, market intelligence and forecasting platform that enables oil traders, refiners, banks, hedge funds and wholesalers to have access to real-time and global actionable insights to capture market opportunities before others.

To find out how Sparta can allow you to make smarter trading decisions, faster, contact us for a demonstration at sales@spartacommodites.com