Senior Quant Data Scientist - Outside IR35 - Fully Remote

Senior Data Scientist – Loan Deal Scoring & LLM Workflows - (Remote, Outside IR35) Overview We’re partnering with a high-performing applied AI team delivering advanced analytics solutions within financial services. They are seeking a Senior Quant Data Scientist to help build next-generation loan deal scoring models combining traditional machine learning, time-series analysis, and LLM-driven workflows. This is a fully remote, outside IR35 contract with strong likelihood of extension (or potential permanent conversion). Key Responsibilities • Develop and deploy ML models for loan/deal scoring (classification, regression, ranking) • Analyse financial, credit, and time-series data to extract predictive signals • Build and benchmark models such as: • Gradient boosting (XGBoost, LightGBM, CatBoost) • Random Forests • Logistic / linear regression • Design LLM-powered workflows for: • Document understanding (loan docs, credit memos, financials) • Risk factor extraction • Deal-level reasoning and recommendations • Combine structured ML outputs with LLM-based reasoning to deliver explainable scores • Work closely with stakeholders to translate credit policy into data-driven workflows • Support model validation, explainability, and performance evaluation Requirements • Strong experience as a Senior Quant Data Scientist • Deep understanding of: • Regression, classification, and ranking models • Time-series analysis & feature engineering • Hands-on experience with: • Python (pandas, NumPy, scikit-learn, etc.) • Gradient boosting frameworks (XGBoost / LightGBM / CatBoost) • Experience working with LLMs (prompting, RAG, embeddings, evaluation) • Ability to work across structured + unstructured data • Strong communication skills – able to engage directly with stakeholders Desirable • Experience in: • Credit risk / lending / underwriting • Financial data / loan documentation • Deal scoring / probability of default • Exposure to agentic workflows / LLM orchestration • Experience with production ML or MLOps Details • Contract: 6 months rolling • Rate: £750 (Outside IR35) • Location: Fully remote • Start: ASAP