A Russian-born maths whizz dubbed the ‘King of Britain’s geeks’ is offering interns a jaw-dropping £26,000-a-month salary to join his trading empire.
Alex Gerko, 45, the secretive billionaire behind London-based XTX Markets, has opened up the eye-watering internship opportunity for students still completing advanced degrees.
The role is no walk in the park – with requirements including an ongoing PhD in ‘computer science, electrical engineering, mathematics, or a related quantitative field’, at least a year left until graduation, ‘solid’ programming skills, and ‘a proven publication record in leading machine learning and AI venues.’
For the lucky individual who lands the spot, the internship pays more than Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer’s annual salary, putting them among the highest-paid interns in the country.
The announcement comes just a week after it was revealed Mr Gerko, once a schoolboy growing up in the shadow of a Moscow tractor factory, made £682million last year.
His earning were due to the soaring success of his cutting-edge firm, which uses artificial intelligence and machine learning to make lightning-fast financial trades.
Founded in 2015, XTX Markets is now one of the fastest-growing fintech firms in the world, trading across 35 countries and handling £186billion in transactions daily – with just 250 staff.
Mr Gerko (left) during a visit to the King’s College London Mathematics School in 2023
His earning were due to the soaring success of his cutting-edge firm, XTX Markets, which uses artificial intelligence and machine learning to make lightning-fast financial trades
Russian-born trader Alex Gerko, 45, has been described as ‘king of the geeks’
At the heart of its operation lies a supercomputer powered by Nvidia AI chips, tucked away in Iceland, where cheap geothermal energy and cold weather keep the machines running efficiently.
It’s reported that XTX has poured more than £150million into the site’s computing power.
The father-of-three has come a long way since his days in a run-down corner of Russia’s capital, where he excelled at maths before eventually moving to the UK. He took British citizenship in 2016 and renounced his Russian citizenship three years ago.
He has also been vocal in his opposition to the war in Ukraine.
Now with a £8.7billion fortune and a place at number 20 on the Sunday Times Rich List, Mr Gerko owns a £22million seven-bedroom London mansion and a vast estate in the Chilterns.
Despite his wealth, he remains one of Britain’s most generous taxpayers and philanthropists.
Mr Gerko is married to former Bank of England economist Elena Gerko, pictured in 2013
Mr Gerko (right) during a visit to the King’s College London Mathematics School in 2023
Once ranked as the country’s biggest individual taxpayer, handing over £664million in 2023, he still gave £202million last year – keeping him in the top ten.
He has also donated tens of millions to UK charities, including Great Ormond Street Hospital, NHS Charities Together, and the Trussell Trust, which supports food banks.
Alongside his wife Elena, a former Bank of England economist, he’s also supported the London Symphony Orchestra with a £1.5million gift, and funds hundreds of ‘maths circles’ – after-school and weekend clubs aimed at nurturing Britain’s next generation of number-crunching talent.
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