Interview experience with Optimus Prime (HFT India)

A friend of mine recently went through the interview process with Optimus Prime for a Quant role, and the entire experience left them frustrated.

They interviewed earlier this year, cleared multiple rounds, and were told the process was moving forward. After that, communication almost stopped. Months passed with little to no update until they followed up themselves.

Eventually, they had a discussion with a senior member of the team, who said the profile looked like a good fit but asked them to wait because of internal scheduling and travel. My friend agreed and waited.

After another month, they followed up again. A discussion was scheduled, postponed, and since my friend happened to be in Bangalore, they even offered to visit the office. They were told to come the following day.

Instead of receiving a meeting time, HR sent an email saying that due to a change in hiring plans, the role no longer existed.

That would have been disappointing but understandable—companies change hiring plans all the time.

What makes the whole experience difficult to understand is what happened afterward.

A recruiter later told my friend that interviews for what appeared to be the same Quant role were still being conducted. I can't independently verify whether it was exactly the same opening, but if that information was accurate, it raises obvious questions about the explanation that was given.

Maybe there was another reason for the rejection, and that's completely fine. Companies reject candidates all the time. What isn't fine is keeping someone waiting for months, repeatedly asking them to be patient, scheduling further discussions, asking them to plan an office visit, and then ending the process with an explanation that appears inconsistent.

I'm sharing this because candidates invest a lot of time and effort into these interviews. Even if the answer is "no," clear and timely communication goes a long way.

Has anyone else interviewed with Optimus Prime? Was your experience similar or completely different?