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Optiver
Founded in 1986 by Johann Kaemingk, Ruud Vlek, and Chris Oomen, Optiver began with a single trader on the floor of Amsterdam's European Options Exchange.
Optiver
Founded in 1986 by Johann Kaemingk, Ruud Vlek, and Chris Oomen, Optiver began with a single trader on the floor of Amsterdam's European Options Exchange. CEO Jan Boomaars now oversees operations from the firm's Amsterdam headquarters, with additional offices spanning Chicago, Austin, New York, London, Sydney, Singapore, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Taipei, and Mumbai. Optiver trades its own capital at its own risk as a market maker across equities, exchange-traded funds, fixed income, commodities, and foreign exchange. The firm provides continuous, competitive two-sided prices on derivatives and cash instruments — including single-stock and index options, government bond and Eurodollar futures, precious metals options, agricultural and energy derivatives, and both listed and OTC FX options. It stands as one of the most electronically sophisticated liquidity providers globally, developing all trading systems and infrastructure in-house to respond to market events at nanosecond speed. The firm is managed by roughly 2,000 professionals worldwide and trades around the clock across seven time zones. Adjacent structures include the Optiver Foundation, launched to support global sustainable change. The firm also holds a position in the Pyth Network and carries specialized assets like Traxys Metals and Minerals and FENIX Carbon Credits on its balance sheet. Optiver recently appointed Sandrine Teran as Chief Financial Officer. Optiver's defining feature is its relentless investment in market structure rather than asset gathering — it operates as a principal trading firm, not a fund, meaning its edge comes from technological and quantitative speed, not management fees. Its active participation in post-trade portfolio compression services across multiple central counterparties gives it a capital-efficiency lever that fund-of-funds and traditional asset managers cannot replicate.
General information
Firm type
Generalist
Year founded
1986
AUM
Undisclosed
Location
Region
Europe
Country
Netherlands
City
Amsterdam
Corporate office
Strawinskylaan 3095, 1077 ZX Amsterdam, Netherlands
Additional offices
Chicago, IL, United States · Austin, TX, United States · New York, NY, United States · London, United Kingdom · Sydney, Australia · Singapore · Shanghai, China · Hong Kong SAR · Taipei, Taiwan · Mumbai, India
Principals
Jan Boomaars
Global CEO
Sandrine Teran
Chief Financial Officer
Altss tracks 4 additional named team members for this firm — including direct investment leads, IR, and operating principals not listed on the public website.
Book a demoSector focus
Frequently asked questions
How does Optiver generate revenue differently from a traditional asset manager or hedge fund?
Optiver is a proprietary market maker — it commits its own capital to quote continuous buy and sell prices on exchanges, earning the bid-ask spread rather than charging management or performance fees. This means revenue comes from capturing small, frequent trading edges across thousands of instruments daily, not from long-term directional asset appreciation. The model is structurally closer to an exchange liquidity provider than to an investment fund.
What asset classes and geographic markets does Optiver cover?
The firm makes markets in equity derivatives, ETFs, fixed income, commodities and foreign exchange across over 75 exchanges globally. Specific products include single-stock and index options, government bond and Eurodollar futures, precious and base metals, agricultural and energy derivatives, and both listed and OTC FX options. Its trading desks operate across Asia-Pacific, Europe, and the Americas from 11 offices.
Does Optiver manage outside client capital?
No. Optiver exclusively trades its own capital and does not accept external investor funds. All profit and loss is retained by the partnership. This proprietary structure means the firm is not registered as an investment adviser and does not have fund investors, redemption terms, or a disclosed AUM number.
Who makes the key investment and risk decisions at Optiver?
Global CEO Jan Boomaars leads overall strategy, while Rutger Brinkhuis runs US operations as CEO of Optiver US. Co-founders Johann Kaemingk, Ruud Vlek, and Chris Oomen remain historically significant but the firm is now managed by a professional executive team. Optiver previously named Sandrine Teran as CFO, and the firm's website indicates that risk management is embedded across all trading teams rather than centralized in a single CIO role.
How does Optiver participate in improving market structure beyond daily trading?
Optiver participates in post-trade portfolio compression cycles across multiple major central counterparties, including CME and SGX, to reduce gross notional exposure and free up capital. It also advocates for regulatory changes through industry memberships — it is a founding member of FIA EPTA and a member of the Plato Partnership — and publishes detailed white papers on market reforms like Brazil's SBL modernization and swaps market liquidity.
What is the Optiver Foundation, and how is it separated from the trading business?
The Optiver Foundation is a philanthropic entity established by the firm to support sustainable global change. It is structurally separate from the proprietary trading operation. While the foundation's specific grant-making focus and governance are not publicly detailed in depth, its existence is noted alongside the firm's corporate sustainability commitments, including partnership with the UN Global Compact.
What technology differentiates Optiver's trading?
All of Optiver's trading systems, pricing models, and execution infrastructure are built entirely in-house. The firm's website indicates that its technology operates at nanosecond-speed, a capability derived from continuous internal development rather than licensed vendor platforms. This vertical integration of hardware and software is central to its ability to quote competitively on thousands of instruments across global exchanges.
Profile maintained by Altss using OSINT (open-source intelligence), regulatory filings, licensed data partners, and verified direct submissions. Read the methodology. Last updated: . Continuous refresh with full update cycles at least every 30 days.
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