Optiver partners with AMD to turbo charge data center modernization efforts

Optiver has partnered with AMD to make use of a range of high-performance compute engines to transform its data center infrastructure. 

The market trading firm will use AMD EPYC processors, AMD Solarflare Ethernet adapters, AMD Virtex FPGAs, and AMD Alveo adaptable accelerators as part of the deal.

The move will enable it to unlock marked performance enhancements and operational agility, according to Alexander Itkin, Optiver’s US CTO. 

“We’re a team of researchers and engineers driven by a common vision: building systems that make financial markets better,” he said. 

"We are constantly pushing the limits, whether it’s challenging the speed of light to minimize latency or building world-leading computational scale. We need computing infrastructure that enables us to navigate the complexities of the capital markets in nanoseconds. 

“For us, this is only possible with high-performance products from AMD, which help us successfully and continuously adapt to financial markets."

Archana Vemulapalli, corporate vice president for commercial enterprise at AMD, said the move will help Optiver to “push the limits of what is possible” with regard to data center performance and efficiency. 

“AMD is uniquely positioned to meet the needs of commercial customers with a robust and diverse portfolio of compute engines that enable impressive performance and energy efficiency; two critical components of the modern data center.”

How AMD products are supporting Optiver’s goals

As part of the deal, Optiver will use 4th Gen AMD EPYC processors to expand  large-scale compute required to drive data analysis and deliver core density for its data center modernization and workload consolidation program.

The market trading firm will also use AMD’s Solarflare X2 series Ethernet network adapters. These are specifically designed for high-performance electronic trading environments, and provide low-level control of network interfaces at the application level. 

Optiver said this will enable it to develop better-designed, scalable systems. 

Virtex UltraScale+ FPGAs will also enable Optiver to accelerate data capabilities and improve operational agility. 

“The exponential growth of data demands smart network and data center solutions that reach beyond fixed-function silicon devices to deliver maximum throughput, high data processing capability, and the flexibility to adapt to evolving connectivity standards,” AMD said. 

Kevin Sprague, US hardware lead at Optiver, said the use of Alveo Accelerators will be critical in enabling the company to “move more information, faster”. 

Optiver will utilize the AMD Alveo U55C and Alveo UL3524 adaptable accelerator cards as part of the deal. The latter of these is capable of delivering 7x latency improvements compared to previous FPGA technologies, according to AMD. 

“Our ultimate goal was to get faster access to data and information that is critical to meet the unique needs and workflows that the financial industry demands,” Sprague said. 

“Our collaboration with AMD helped us develop the products and features our industry demands. Additionally, our joint work has allowed us to expand and optimize our offering by leveraging not only AMD FPGAs, but also AMD EPYC CPUs to build out high-performance trading systems and infrastructure.”