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Quantitative Analyst

Finance

Develop quantitative techniques to inform securities investing, equities investing, pricing, or valuation of financial instruments. Develop mathematical or statistical models for risk management, asset optimization, pricing, or relative value analysis.

FinanceData Science

Picture the job

Where you'd usually workA finance or banking office

  • Mostly indoors
  • Sitting for most of the day
  • Regular working hours

An illustration of a typical workplace, not a photo. The work-style notes come from US O*NET data, so read them as a guide.

In Malaysia

Malaysia has few hedge funds or trading desks hiring 'quants' in the US sense. Most quantitative jobs are in banks' credit-risk modelling and model-validation teams (IFRS 9, Basel), in treasury and market risk, and in insurers' actuarial and ALM teams. Hays quotes a separate hedge-fund Quantitative Analyst band of RM114k–168k a year, but such roles are rare here.

How people get into it here
SPM → STPM, Matrikulasi, A-Level or Foundation → Bachelor's in Mathematics, Statistics, Actuarial Science, Financial Engineering or Computer Science → analyst roles in bank risk-modelling, model-validation or treasury teams. A Master's, FRM or CFA helps, and Python/SQL skills are expected.
Demand
MyCOL 2024/2025 lists Mathematicians, Actuaries and Statisticians, and Financial Analysts, as critical occupations. Employers nominated 'Risk Modelling Manager' among finance-manager titles. TalentCorp MyCOL 2024/2025

Sources:ecentral.my

Pay in Malaysia

Starting in the role

RM5,000 – RM10,000

per month

Experienced

RM10,000 – RM17,000

per month

From a published Malaysian salary guide. Actual offers vary by employer, city and experience.

Hays Asia Salary Guide 2025 · 2025

How far is this from you?

Roughly how much preparation this job usually takes. In Malaysia your UPU route and the programme's syarat still decide entry, so treat this as a guide, not a gate.

  1. 1

    Entry straight after SPM

  2. 2

    SPM + sijil / short TVET course

  3. 3

    Diploma / TVET (sijil–diploma)

  4. 4

    Degree (ijazah sarjana muda)

  5. Typical entry

    Postgrad (sarjana / PhD) or professional route

Typical educationMaster's degree

Quick answers

How do you become a Quantitative Analyst in Malaysia?

SPM → STPM, Matrikulasi, A-Level or Foundation → Bachelor's in Mathematics, Statistics, Actuarial Science, Financial Engineering or Computer Science → analyst roles in bank risk-modelling, model-validation or treasury teams. A Master's, FRM or CFA helps, and Python/SQL skills are expected.

What should I study to become a Quantitative Analyst?

Related fields of study: Finance and Data Science. SPM subjects that help most: Additional Mathematics, Mathematics, Principles of Accounting and Economics.

How much does a Quantitative Analyst earn in Malaysia?

Published figures put starting pay at RM5,000 – RM10,000 a month, and RM10,000 – RM17,000 with experience (source: Hays Asia Salary Guide 2025, 2025).

What you'd do all day

The tasks that matter most in this job, most important first.

  1. 1Apply mathematical or statistical techniques to address practical issues in finance, such as derivative valuation, securities trading, risk management, or financial market regulation.
  2. 2Research or develop analytical tools to address issues such as portfolio construction or optimization, performance measurement, attribution, profit and loss measurement, or pricing models.
  3. 3Interpret results of financial analysis procedures.
  4. 4Develop core analytical capabilities or model libraries, using advanced statistical, quantitative, or econometric techniques.
  5. 5Define or recommend model specifications or data collection methods.
  6. 6Maintain or modify all financial analytic models in use.
  7. 7Produce written summary reports of financial research results.
  8. 8Provide application or analytical support to researchers or traders on issues such as valuations or data.
  9. 9Devise or apply independent models or tools to help verify results of analytical systems.
  10. 10Collaborate in the development or testing of new analytical software to ensure compliance with user requirements, specifications, or scope.
  11. 11Confer with other financial engineers or analysts on trading strategies, market dynamics, or trading system performance to inform development of quantitative techniques.
  12. 12Consult traders or other financial industry personnel to determine the need for new or improved analytical applications.
  13. 13Research new financial products or analytics to determine their usefulness.
  14. 14Identify, track, or maintain metrics for trading system operations.
  15. 15Develop methods of assessing or measuring corporate performance in terms of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues.
  16. 16Prepare requirements documentation for use by software developers.
  17. 17Collaborate with product development teams to research, model, validate, or implement quantitative structured solutions for new or expanded markets.
  18. 18Develop solutions to help clients hedge carbon exposure or risk.
  19. 19Develop tools to assess green technologies or green financial products, such as green hedge funds or social responsibility investment funds.
  20. 20Assess the potential impact of climate change on business financial issues, such as damage repairs, insurance costs, or potential disruptions of daily activities.
  21. 21Analyze pricing or risks of carbon trading products.

Also known as

What this job is called on JobStreet, LinkedIn and in job ads. Search these too.

  • Analyst
  • Structurer
  • Data Analyst
  • Equity Analyst
  • Finance Analyst
  • Research Analyst
  • Equity Structurer
  • Financial Analyst
  • Portfolio Manager
  • Financial Engineer

Subjects that matter here

The SPM subjects worth your effort for this career, with the reason for each.

Additional MathematicsDraws directly on Mathematics — a top knowledge area for this role (O*NET).
MathematicsDraws directly on Mathematics — a top knowledge area for this role (O*NET).
Principles of AccountingDraws directly on Economics and Accounting — a top knowledge area for this role (O*NET).
EconomicsDraws directly on Economics and Accounting — a top knowledge area for this role (O*NET).
Computer Science / ICTDraws directly on Computers and Electronics — a top knowledge area for this role (O*NET).

What you'd need to know

The subject areas this job leans on most, and the SPM subjects that build them.

  • Mathematics93%

    Additional MathematicsMathematics

  • Economics and Accounting84%

    Principles of AccountingEconomics

  • Computers and Electronics74%

    Computer Science / ICTElectrical & Electronic Eng. Studies

  • English Language61%

    English

  • Engineering and Technology54%

    PhysicsAdditional MathematicsDesign & Technology (RBT)

  • Design42%

    Visual Art (PSV)Technical Comm. GraphicsEngineering Drawing

Tools you'd use

Software and equipment that show up in this job, worth learning early.

What the work feels like

Day-to-day working conditions, so you can tell whether the job suits how you like to work.

  • Face-to-face discussionsOften
  • Leading or coordinating othersHigh
  • Handling conflict situationsRarely
  • Indoors, air-conditionedEvery day
  • Outdoors, in all weatherAlmost never
  • Noisy environmentAlmost never
  • Time spent sittingAlmost all the time
  • Time spent standingA little

AI and demand for this job

A few real, dated data points, not a single score. AI making some tasks faster usually means a job changes, not that it disappears.

32%

Share of everyday tasks today's AI can already help with (2023)

This estimate is from 2023, already out of date, since AI moves fast. Treat it as a rough, aging starting point, not the current picture.

0.30%

Of Malaysian Claude conversations, about this kind of work

Measures how much people use Claude for this work, not how many Malaysians do this job, and more AI use can mean people relying on it, not that it's replacing them.

On Malaysia's official shortage list

TalentCorp and ILMIA's Critical Occupations List, evidence of a real hiring shortage in Malaysia right now.

Matched to a related occupation on the list, not this exact job title.

Financial Analysts · Shortage indicators met: INSUFFICIENT DATA

What beginner adverts asked for

We read 54 internship and fresh-graduate adverts in related fields (August 2026). A small sample from one job site, not every vacancy.

29 of 54 were internships

Allowance or pay, when stated

RM1,150 – RM3,450

26 of 54 adverts printed an amount: usually between RM1,150 and RM3,450 a month. Many print none.

Minimum CGPA asked

3.00 to 3.50

Stated in 6 adverts. Others did not state one.

SPM results asked

up to 5 As

1 advert asked for A grades at SPM, so some doors are partly decided before university.

Languages named

Mandarin, Bahasa Malaysia

An empty line means the adverts did not say, not that employers have no requirement. Check each employer's own advert before you plan around it.

Related careers

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About this information

This describes what the job involves. Pay, demand and entry routes differ in Malaysia, so check the Pathways and Programmes pages for local requirements.

O*NET occupation: Financial Quantitative Analysts

Source: Hays Asia Salary Guide 2025 · as of Jan 2025

Check the salary figures yourself:Hays Asia Salary Guide 2025

Job responsibilities, knowledge areas and work context from O*NET 30.3, US Department of Labor, used under CC BY 4.0. onetcenter.org