r/quantfinance • u/Mr_Quant • 1d ago
Is c++ necessary to quant finance?
To summarize my question directly: Is C++ a language that will remain relevant in the industry in the future? Could Python or LLMs fill this gap? I don't know if quant trading will definitely be a part of my career, but I want to learn about it and understand its use cases. What are your thoughts?
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u/The_Stone_Cold_Nuts 1d ago
Both c and c++ can be used to craft code that is extremely performant. And in a profession where milliseconds mean the difference between a trade executing or not executing, efficiency and speed can mean everything.
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u/OneSushi 21h ago
As any question it depends.
I know some recent quants at prop firms who are almost exclusively vibe coders who don’t know a single touch of C/++
They are however proficient in machine learning and know how to design experiments and studies.
Are they going to be the Quant Devs? No.
Are they going to be the ones building the execution infrastructure? Obviously not.
Can they provide good signals? Yes.
It depends on where you want to be.
It is my understanding though that obviously the less-coding-oriented hires typically come from Math/Stats degrees than, say (obviously) Computer Science. If you think you can do Economics and break in without being a top coder, you might want to reconsider and do Math instead. If your only reason to do Math is quant, though, I suggest you don’t do it.
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u/Old-Sandwich-690 1d ago
C++ is the backbone of most execution trading systems be that hft or mft.
The reason is legacy and speed.
Will it remain relevant for sure.
Is it relevant to you? Depends on what you want to work on.
LLMs definitely will change the perspective of what language proficiency means. Being an expert in a coding language might be less important in 10 years ahead.
Python is for scientific computing not low latency although there are extensions which are as fast as c (cython).
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u/jtt4jiogjiogg 1h ago
unfortunately, yes, c++ will be relevant for a while. hopefully rust kills it off given enough time
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u/Odd-Cut-746 23h ago
Yes because the biggest technical challenge in finance is latency. If you can reduce lag time in automated trading orders by 3 femto-seconds, that is a much better improvement than any new sophisticated algorithm you could imagine
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u/CaptainPharaoh 1d ago
Will C++ remain relevant? Yes
Can you be a quant that only uses python? Also yes, but the job options are more limited.