INTRODUCTION
It is pleasing to see that the Q2 has continued in the same way as Q1, with the market being increasingly active. Another refreshing change is that both Mid-Senior and Senior vacancies are coming to fruition. It has been a busy time across the different verticals in Compliance with Monitoring roles definitely being the ‘flavour of the month’ in June. This feels like a positive moment across Financial Services as we are finding the majority of roles are coming from growth/increased demand rather than replacement roles.
ROLE PROFILES
Q2 has seen a growing trend of firms splitting their Compliance and Financial Crime teams and there has been a continued emphasis of needing strong AML candidates who have experience in building the Financial Crime Framework. As predicted at the end of Q1, we have experienced hiring in the Senior end of the pool including Chief Compliance Officers, Heads of Compliance and MLRO’s and we suspect this will continue into Q3. The second half of Q2 has seen a strong demand for Compliance Monitoring individuals and this need has been across Financial Services in Asset Manager, Banking and Brokerages.
Head of Compliance/CCO/MLRO – Q2 has seen an increase of senior-level requirements, The needs are across Fin Techs, Brokerages, and Investment Managers. We believe this is still the tip of the iceberg as conversations to date lead me to believe there will be much more to come at this level.
Compliance Monitoring
This is an area that has exploded across both buy-side and sell-side clients. Monitoring seems to be the most sought-after skillet at the moment, and this ranges from general Monitoring duties, knowledge of MAR to also more niche positions which focus on Thematic reviews and this has been repeatedly asked for in the candidate’s experience when speaking to clients.
In terms of candidates background, teams that are hiring typically collaborate with different departments across the business. Therefore candidates, at any level, need to be able to build strong relationships with senior stakeholders and be able to face-off to SME’s within technical areas of the business. Our investment banking clients have expressed interest in candidates who have specific product knowledge, who can conduct reviews within the designated FICC & Equities teams. Once again, they will need to have that specific understanding of the products and stakeholders they are engaging with and this requires previous exposure to these products.
Financial Crime – This has continued to hold momentum in Q2 and we have had newly created and replacement roles across Asset Management, Investment Banking, and Brokerage firms. We have seen both permanent and Fixed Term Contract roles this quarter and this has been across the board, from AML analyst to MLRO’s. Firms are setting up to bolster their teams with a focus on candidates with strong AML, AB&C, and Sanctions experience. Candidates with hands-on experience in building Frameworks are highly sought after along with Generalist Financial Crime Compliance candidates.
Compliance Advisory/Regulatory Compliance – As the Regulatory landscape has continued to evolve in 2020, Q2 has also seen a steady interest in Compliance Advisory and regulatory candidates, particularly on the Senior end of the market. This was buoyant in Q1 and has started to tail off.
The Investment Firms Regulation (IFR) and the Investment Firms Directive (IFD) will take effect in June 2021, and the FinTech and Innovation space has seen a few firms being proactive and ensuring they have high calibre candidates able to breakdown and educate the business on changes.
Remunerations
The increased activity has meant candidates are now in a position of choice with candidates having two or three processes and offer options at a time. Therefore the speed of processes is pivotal in securing the best candidates. The increased options have led to clients offering above the candidates’ expectations to ensure their commitment. This is a complete turnaround from 6 months ago and we are now seeing salaries matching if not exceeding the market rate.