Gelber Group

What Gelber Group does

Gelber Group is a Chicago-based proprietary trading firm founded in 1982 by Brian and Frank Gelber, originally as a floor brokerage on the Chicago Board of Trade. In 1997 the firm transitioned to electronic, screen-based proprietary trading and now trades its own capital across foreign exchange, fixed income, equities, and commodities on major exchanges worldwide. The firm operates 16 distinct discretionary trading groups alongside an Algorithmic Trading Strategies (ATS) division founded in 2010 by Co-President Carl Mahler, which executes medium- to high-frequency automated strategies across futures and securities markets.

The firm's underlying technology consists of proprietary algorithmic trading platforms, backtesting infrastructure, and risk management systems developed in-house by engineers, researchers, and traders working in collaboration. The technology stack supports trade execution, front- and back-office applications, strategy integrations, and technical operations, with CTO Baris Mestanogullari overseeing platform development since 2022. The firm holds multiple U.S. patents in credit controls and chat-based OTC trading through its CTO, and operates a 42,000-square-foot Chicago headquarters supporting over 200 employees, with additional offices in White Plains, NY, and Amsterdam (Gelber Coöperatief U.A.).

Gelber's business model is self-funded proprietary trading: the firm assumes all market risk and reward on its own capital rather than charging external customers. Revenue is derived from trading P&L across asset classes, with the firm paying traders through competitive profit splits rather than collecting fees from clients. The firm recruits experienced, profitable traders through direct hiring and its proprietary theBreakout trading competition, and operates with a flat, meritocratic organizational structure. It holds no external customers, has no disclosed funding rounds, and is privately controlled by founder/CEO Brian Gelber with no parent company or institutional investors identified.

Name

Gelber Group

Legal name

Gelber Group, LLC

Website

https://gelbergroup.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1982

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

Gelber Group is a privately held Chicago-based proprietary trading firm that trades its own capital across FX, fixed income, equities, and commodities via 16 discretionary trading groups and an algorithmic trading strategies division, serving experienced traders with capital and technology.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Proprietary Trading: Gelber Group trades its own capital across major asset classes including foreign exchange, fixed income, equities, and commodities on major exchanges worldwide. The firm assumes all associated risks and rewards, differentiating its model from brokers, hedge funds, or banks. High compensation is provided to traders through competitive profit splits.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

Gelber Group is a privately funded proprietary trading firm that trades its own capital across foreign exchange, fixed income, equities, and commodities on major global exchanges. The firm operates discretionary trading through 16 distinct trading groups and an algorithmic trading strategies (ATS) division, providing selected traders with capital, proprietary technology, mentorship, and competitive profit splits in exchange for their trading performance.

Product overview

Gelber Group operates as a proprietary trading firm with two primary offerings: discretionary trading across foreign exchange, fixed income, equities, and commodities through 16 distinct trading groups, and an algorithmic trading strategies division (ATS) that develops automated trading strategies with medium to high frequency execution across major futures and securities markets. Additionally, the company offers theBreakout, a simulated futures and FX trading competition designed to identify and recruit talented traders.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• theBreakout: A fully remote, discretionary, simulated Futures & FX trading competition offering cash prizes and employment opportunities for talented traders.

Products and services

• Algorithmic Trading Strategies (ATS) Algorithmic trading strategies that seek predictable and repeatable behavior in financial markets and formalize logic to capitalize on such behavior through collaboration between researchers, engineers, and traders.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Wolverine Trading: Chicago-based proprietary trading firm trading multiple asset classes with discretionary and systematic strategies. Highly comparable to Gelber in scale, location, business model, and multi-strategy approach; Gelber's own David Bloom previously served as Controller at Wolverine.
• DRW Trading: Chicago-headquartered diversified proprietary trading firm operating across multiple asset classes globally. Closely comparable to Gelber in model (principal capital, multi-strategy), scale, and longevity in Chicago's prop-trading ecosystem.
• Akuna Capital: Chicago and Sydney-based proprietary trading firm focused on options, equities, and futures with significant technology investment. Comparable to Gelber as a tech-driven, multi-asset prop firm competing for similar quantitative and discretionary talent.
• Chicago Trading Company (CTC): Chicago-based proprietary trading firm with discretionary and quantitative strategies across derivatives markets. Direct comparable; Gelber's CTO previously held technology and leadership roles at CTC.
• IMC Financial Markets: Amsterdam-headquartered global proprietary trading firm operating across options, equities, fixed income, and FX. Direct peer based on shared multi-asset, technology-driven prop-trading model and Amsterdam operating presence.
• Optiver: Amsterdam-based global proprietary market maker trading options, futures, equities, bonds, and FX. Comparable to Gelber in asset-class breadth and technology focus; relevant European-headquartered peer given Gelber's Amsterdam office.
• Susquehanna International Group (SIG): Bala Cynwyd, PA-based global proprietary trading firm trading equities, options, futures, and FX. Comparable multi-asset, multi-strategy prop-trading model with proprietary technology emphasis.

Broad incumbents

• Citadel Securities: Global market maker and proprietary trading firm that is among the largest and best-capitalized players. Overlaps with Gelber in equities, options, and fixed-income prop trading but at materially larger scale and broader mandate.
• Jane Street: Global proprietary trading firm and liquidity provider with deep technology infrastructure. Comparable in technology-led prop-trading approach across multiple asset classes, though materially larger and broader in scope than Gelber.

Regional players

• All Options: Amsterdam-based proprietary derivatives trading firm focused on options and volatility strategies. Comparable to Gelber's Amsterdam operations and options-adjacent strategies; regional peer with overlap in European derivatives prop trading.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/gelber-group-llc
• Xx.com/gelbergroup
• Facebookfacebook.com/gelbergroup

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Gelber Group