Lee Sung-hoon’s quant pay seen near $1 million

Feb 13, 2026, 07:58 am

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Lee Sung-hoon, a contestant on Single’s Inferno 5, appears in a promotional clip released on Netflix’s YouTube channel.

Lee Sung-hoon, who formed a final couple with Choi Minasu on Netflix’s dating reality show Single’s Inferno 5, is drawing renewed attention for his elite career background — and his estimated salary as a quant trader.

According to a recent YouTube video by an overseas tech career podcast analyzing his résumé, Lee graduated from the University of California, Berkeley with a degree in computer science and followed a path typical of Silicon Valley’s top talent.

Rather than starting in finance, Lee began his career at major Big Tech firms. He reportedly worked as a software engineer at Amazon and Google, and later gained experience at data cloud company Snowflake. Industry observers described his background as “the kind of résumé 99 percent of tech professionals dream of.”

During his time at Google, Lee is believed to have worked at the L4–L5 engineer level, earning an estimated total compensation of $200,000 to $300,000 per year, including base salary, bonuses and stock options.

In February 2023, however, he left Big Tech for New York-based proprietary trading firm Jump Trading.

Jump Trading is widely regarded as one of the world’s top proprietary trading firms, specializing in high-frequency algorithmic trading using its own capital. The firm is often likened to the “Navy Seals of finance” due to its highly selective hiring process, with some estimates putting the acceptance rate at below 1 percent.

Estimated compensation as a quant trader

Since transitioning into a quant trader role, interest has grown around Lee’s potential earnings.

Industry estimates suggest that at a top-tier firm such as Jump Trading, someone with Lee’s background would likely receive a base salary of at least $200,000 to $250,000. Bonuses can range from 100 percent to 300 percent of base pay.

Even conservative calculations place his annual total compensation between $500,000 and $750,000 — approximately 724 million to 1.08 billion won. With exceptional performance, seven-figure annual earnings in U.S. dollars are also considered possible.

Lee’s high-profile career trajectory, now combined with his appearance on Single’s Inferno 5, has further fueled public fascination with the crossover between elite tech talent and the competitive world of quantitative trading.

#Single’s Inferno 5 #Lee Sung-hoon #Choi Minasu #Jump Trading #UC Berkeley