Hudson River Trading (HRT), a Wall Street proprietary trading firm, recorded a record $11.4 billion in trading revenue during the second quarter of 2026, as reported by the Financial Times. This substantial windfall was largely attributed to significant market volatility, particularly in AI-related stocks and broader market turbulence caused by the war in Iran. The firm also posted a net profit of $7.4 billion for the three months ending in June, according to an individual familiar with the results.
This record performance by HRT comes amidst a period of heightened activity for proprietary trading firms, which leverage automated market-making operations to capitalize on price discrepancies. In contrast to HRT's success, rival firm Jane Street experienced a $15 billion loss in July, primarily due to investments linked to AI stocks and Leopold Aschenbrenner’s Situational Awareness hedge fund. Despite Jane Street's setback, leading proprietary trading firms, including Hudson River Trading, Jane Street, and Citadel Securities, collectively generated over $60 billion in trading revenue in 2025.
HRT's Q2 2026 trading revenue alone almost equaled its entire net trading revenue of approximately $12.3 billion for the full year 2025, highlighting the dramatic increase in profitable trading opportunities. The firm's first-half 2026 trading revenue reached approximately $17.8 billion, with Q1 alone contributing $6.4 billion. HRT is also significantly investing in artificial intelligence and computing infrastructure, with its head of AI, Iain Dunning, indicating a substantial increase in computing capacity for the coming year to support its AI-powered trading systems. HRT reportedly declined to comment on its financial results.
