Qube Research & Technologies has appointed former Citadel Securities trader Holly Lau as its US chief operating officer, underscoring the quant firm’s accelerating expansion in North America and continued push into electronic trading and market-making strategies, according to a report by eFinancial Careers.

Lau is based in New York and joins Qube after a senior career at Citadel Securities, where she spent eight years and held roles including head of delta one and American depositary receipt (ADR) trading. She left the firm in 2024 and most recently served as COO at Summit Securities, a New York-based proprietary trading and market-making firm.

Lau's appointment adds further weight to New York’s role as the centre of Qube’s US buildout. The UK- and France-based quantitative investment manager has opened multiple offices in the region since last year as it broadens its footprint beyond Europe.

Qube, which reportedly generated returns of around 30% last year, has been steadily scaling its presence in the US while also increasing its exposure to electronic market-making strategies, an area closely aligned with Lau’s background. The firm now operates across several US locations, including New York and Chicago, and also runs a separate commodities trading unit, Q-TX, based in Houston.

As part of its expansion, Qube is actively recruiting across its US platform, with multiple open roles in New York spanning engineering and trading infrastructure, including FPGA engineering and C++ development positions focused on crypto-related systems. Additional hiring is also underway in Chicago and within its Houston-based commodities business.