how to explain the gospel to a quant trader

a life of faith in a "godless" industry

I currently work in the quantitative finance industry in the New York City. The primary goal of most companies in this space (e.g., hedge funds & prop shops) is to generate returns for their investors. Money, in all of its wonderful and terrible forms, is the singular driving of this industry. Unsurprisingly, it is not somewhere you would expect to find a vibrant community of Christians.

For me, it has been difficult to connect my identity as a Christian with my career as a quant trader. Unlike my previous workplaces, there are no Christian affinity groups or weekly prayer meetings. I have yet to encounter a fellow believer in my line of work. Even before the pandemic, people tended to separate their work and personal lives, so there was little fraternization outside of the walls of my office. Remote work has only strengthened these intersocial barriers.

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