Ask HN: What's It Like as a Software Engineer at a Hedge Fund or Prop Shop?

I'm aware that at large banks and similar financial institutions software developers are often considered second class citizens as cost centers.

But I've also heard that at Hedge Funds and Prop Trading firms, there are "front office" software engineering roles available that offer very competitive pay and consideration as a profit center.

Is this impression correct? I'd like to hear more about these sorts of roles.