The best sectors for financial services jobs now. And the worst

If you’ve been looking for a new financial services job in the second quarter of 2022 and you couldn’t find one, that might be because you were looking for a job with a hedge fund instead of a real estate investment manager. 

Figures for jobs posted globally on eFinancialCareers during the months of April to June show that hedge fund jobs were down precipitously on the same period of 2021. By comparison, jobs associated with real estate boomed.

The increase likely reflects demand for assets like real estate and infrastructure as a potential hedge against inflation. In their recent mid-year outlook, UBS’s real estate team noted that real estate investments have traditionally offered low correlation with other asset classes and that periods of high inflation are typically correlated with high real estate returns. Real estate M&A has also been comparatively buoyant, although the sector is not without its challenges in a rising rate environment and world where offices remain empty as people work from home. 

Consultancy jobs also grew in Q2, as did risk, compliance and finance (control) jobs. Speaking last week, Keith Bevans, global head of consulting recruitment at Bain & Co, said consulting jobs are typically stable whatever the econonic climate. Meanwhile, banks like Credit Suisse and Citi have been investing heavily in risk and controls.

M&A hiring has also been comparatively stable, even though global M&A revenues declined 5% in the first half. This likely reflects the ongoing struggle to recruit analyst and associate talent.

All other areas of the front office, however, experienced double-digit declines in jobs advertised on eFinancialCareers in Q2 2022 compared to 2021. Why was this? Jefferies’ results for the second quarter offer a clue: equity and debt capital markets revenues remain woeful this year; fixed income currencies and commodities (FICC) revenues may not have been as strong as some banks have been suggesting. 

The technology hiring boom also appears to be over as banks like Credit Suisse move into cost-cutting mode. However, this may be at least partly because technology recruitment was elevated last year after the pandemic.

Photo by David Marcu on Unsplash

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