Quantitative hedge fund Squarepoint Capital is continuing to strengthen its commodities trading business, adding experienced traders from leading commodity merchants and investment firms as it expands its presence across both derivatives and physical markets, according to a report by eFinancial Careers. The firm has also hired former Citadel commodities analyst Romain Guion and Alexandre Gerst, who previously worked at energy trading company Axpo in Singapore. While the firm has long traded commodity derivatives using quantitative models, it has been steadily expanding into physical commodities, particularly metals. The move builds on an expansion reported last year, when Squarepoint began investing in a physical metals trading operation through its Squarepoint Trading Group (STG) business. The initiative has included recruiting specialists with experience in the sourcing, logistics and trading of physical metals.