Software Engineer, Backend (Clearing)

CBOE builds and operates clearing services in a high trust, regulated environment through Cboe Clear U.S. (CCUS). In this onsite role in Chicago, IL, you will help deliver microservices that clear trades, including margin and settlement, with production ownership, strong observability, and end-to-end responsibility.

What you’ll do

• Design, develop, and maintain scalable microservices in Java.
• Optimize PostgreSQL schemas and queries to support critical clearing workflows.
• Build services that enable clearing workflows, including trade processing, margin, and settlement.
• Ensure data integrity, consistency, and reconciliation across integrated systems.
• Operate what you build with metrics, logs, and traces to diagnose issues in production.
• Help define service level objectives and the alerting that protects them.
• Contribute to architecture decision records and design documents before implementation begins.
• Use AI tools responsibly, including Claude or Copilot, to improve code quality and productivity.
• Document relevant details in the team wiki.

How your work fits

CCUS Software Engineering supports event contracts and prediction markets listed on Cboe’s exchanges. The platform is building toward tokenized collateral, 24x7 operation, and the infrastructure that brings traditional finance onto DeFi rails. The engineering environment is described as high trust.

Technology and tools

You will work with a stack that includes Java on Kubernetes, PostgreSQL, Kafka, and Linux. Development and CI pipelines run in GitHub with GitHub Actions. Container images and build artifacts are stored in registries such as Harbor and Artifactory, with Helm charts deployed by ArgoCD from a GitOps repository. The role also references distributed tracing and observability tooling.

Required qualifications

• Support delivery across the full software lifecycle, from design and implementation through testing and production support.
• Experience building and operating distributed, service-based systems in production.
• Production engineering discipline, including ownership of services that you keep running.
• Solid grounding in object-oriented and functional programming, software engineering principles, design patterns, data modeling, and SQL.
• A track record of turning ideas into shipped work, including the ability to change direction based on evidence.
• Ability to collaborate with non-technical partners to deliver working solutions.
• Strong command of Java, with at least three years of job experience in Java.

Minimum experience: 3 years. Education: Bachelor’s in Computer Science or a related discipline, or equivalent practical experience.

Preferred and nice to have

• Preferred: Container orchestration with Kubernetes, Nomad, or similar orchestrators; event streaming with Kafka or an equivalent; capital markets clearing or post-trade systems; solid Linux fundamentals and disciplined use of version control; AI-assisted development tooling.
• Nice to have: Python for analytics work and rapid prototyping; JVM languages such as Clojure, Scala, or Kotlin; the FIX messaging protocol; distributed tracing and observability tooling.

Minimum work experience: 5+ years in backend development.

Role location and salary

Location: Chicago, IL (onsite). Cboe HQ is located in the historic Old Post Office district.

Salary: USD 107,525 - 139,150 per year (US locations only, anticipated base salary range).

Eligibility and communication

• Visa sponsorship: This position is not eligible for visa sponsorship. Candidates must be legally authorized to work in the United States without employer sponsorship now or in the future.
• Recruiting contact: Any communication about this position will come only from a Cboe recruiter with a @cboe.com email or via LinkedIn Recruiter. Cboe does not use other third-party communication tools for recruiting.