Backend Engineer

The Tidal Financial Group is a leading ETF investment technology platform dedicated to creating, operating, and growing ETFs. We combine expertise and innovative partnership approaches to offer comprehensive, value-generating ETF solutions. 

Our platform offers best-in-class strategic guidance, product planning, trust and fund services, legal support, operations support, marketing and research, and sales and distribution services.

About the role

Tidal Financial Group is seeking a Backend Software Engineer to build and maintain the trading applications that power our ETF platform. This is a backend-focused role, centered on designing reliable, high-performance systems in C# and .NET 10 that support traders and operations teams.

You’ll work closely with frontend, data, and DevOps teams—collaborating on requirements, aligning on interfaces, and helping ensure systems work seamlessly end-to-end. This role plays an important part in delivering tools that are accurate, responsive, and dependable for real-world financial decision-making.

We’re looking for someone who takes ownership of their work, communicates clearly, and values building simple, well-designed systems. The ideal candidate brings strong .NET experience along with an interest in financial markets and trading workflows. Candidates with experience working directly with ETFs are strongly preferred.

What you'll do

• Design and develop backend services, APIs, and real-time systems for internal trading applications and external-facing client platforms in C# / .NET 10, with a focus on reliability, performance, and maintainability.
• Build and maintain integrations with Bloomberg using REST, FIX, and Pub/Sub APIs to support trading operations, market data, and transaction reporting workflows.
• Implement real-time data delivery using SignalR and messaging patterns using Redis for caching, queueing, and pub/sub messaging.
• Design and query relational data models using Entity Framework Core, LINQ, and PostgreSQL (AWS Aurora), while collaborating with the Data team on shared data needs, including Snowflake.
• Implement and maintain application security, including SSO for internal applications and appropriate authentication/authorization patterns (OAuth2, OpenID Connect) for external-facing platforms.
• Partner closely with frontend, data, and DevOps teams to define API contracts, align on requirements, and deliver solutions collaboratively and efficiently.
• Contribute to architectural decisions, code reviews, and engineering standards, with an emphasis on clarity, simplicity, and long-term scalability.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of backend software engineering experience with a strong focus on C# and modern .NET (.NET 6+, ideally .NET 10).
• Deep proficiency in the .NET ecosystem, including Entity Framework Core, LINQ, SignalR, and related libraries.
• Strong experience with PostgreSQL and relational data modeling; comfortable writing and optimizing complex SQL queries.
• Experience building and securing both internal and external-facing APIs, including SSO integration (Microsoft Entra / Azure AD) and external authentication patterns (OAuth2, OpenID Connect).
• Experience with Redis for caching, queueing, and pub/sub messaging patterns.
• Familiarity with gRPC, or openness to adopting it as part of the stack.
• Proficiency with Git/GitHub and modern development workflows (pull requests, code review, branching strategies).
• Comfortable using JetBrains Rider or equivalent professional .NET tooling.
• Experience working in Agile environments, with a collaborative, team-first approach to planning and delivery.
• Strong communicator who can work effectively across teams, bringing clarity to technical decisions and aligning stakeholders without requiring close oversight.
• Self-directed and accountable, with the ability to manage priorities and follow through in a fast-moving environment.

Preferred: 

• Experience with Bloomberg integrations using REST, FIX, and Pub/Sub APIs
• Familiarity with ETF lifecycle concepts—basket creation, order management, NAV calculation, holdings reconciliation, and trade workflows
• Awareness of AWS compute and infrastructure (ECS/EC2, Lambda, CloudWatch)
• Familiarity with Snowflake as a data platform
• Exposure to Next.js or modern frontend frameworks (helpful for cross-team collaboration)
• Understanding of compliance frameworks such as SOC2
• Curiosity about financial markets and trading systems, with an interest in how technology supports real-time decision-making

Soft Skills: 

• Analytical mindset with the ability to translate business processes into scalable technical solutions. 

• Flexibility to work with the changing demands of the business team. 

• Clear communication and documentation skills across technical and non-technical stakeholders. 

• Collaborative, resourceful, and proactive in a fast-paced, remote-first environment. 

We are prioritizing candidates who are located within proximity to Chicago, IL.