eFinancialCareers

For those suffering the drudgery of a lengthy commute, the idea of walking to work would be daily nirvana. If you’re prepared to up sticks and move north of the Border, you’ll very likely achieve just that. Edinburgh, apart from being a beautiful city, is also Scotland’s financial hub. Almost exclusively buy-side, it manages to combine high-powered finance with a more civilised pace of existence. Accessibility and an improved quality of life... Read more

Does Scotland really need to pay for its financial services jobs? A war of words has broken out in Scotland after the SNP-led administration awarded £6m to US investment bank Morgan Stanley, as long as it creates 600 jobs in Glasgow. The handout from the Regional Selective Assistance scheme, which amounts to £10k per job, was blasted by both opposition politicians and groups who look into how taxpayers' money is spent,... Read more

Scotland’s financial sector continues to boom. But where are all the people to fill the jobs? The most recent Bank of Scotland survey of the Scottish labour market, published in October, reveals finance and accounting employers are facing acute skills shortages – they rank second behind engineering and construction as finding it hardest to fill roles. The gaping hole in the supply of talent might be down to the fact that Scotland... Read more

As Scotland bids for independence from the rest of the UK, there’s the suggestion that its financial services sector could lose out. Global Financial Services Week (GFSW) looks to highlight Scotland’s importance as a financial centre, and the cabinet secretary for finance, John Swinney, took the opportunity to attempt to assuage fears that an independent Scotland could undermine the industry. He said: “We would have to take decisions about the way in... Read more

A clear favourite has emerged as the next chairman of Royal Bank of Scotland in the form of John McFarlane, who currently sits on the bank’s board as non-executive director. However, a political battle has begun to take shape and other candidates are emerging from the woodwork. The appointment of McFarlane, a Scot who was previously chief exec of Australia and New Zealand banking group ANZ, would ease the sensitivities... Read more

Given that Scotland’s two largest banks are part-nationalised, it’s not surprising that the discussions regarding the future of jobs north of the border are the subject of a political barney. One of the clauses in the initial takeover document relating to Lloyds TSB's ingestion of HBOS was that the focus would be on retaining Scottish jobs and Scottish decision-making. With redundancies estimated at anything between 14,000 and 40,000, there’s reason... Read more

A new survey by recruitment firm Joslin Rowe suggests that financial services hiring activity in Ireland is soaring, while growth in Scotland is more modest. Recruitment in Dublin soared between April and May, with permanent hiring activity increasing by a massive 53% month on month. “The financial services sector in Ireland is booming. One of the biggest areas is the funds area, and the fund administration area,” says Helen O’Reilly, head... Read more

As the acquisition of HBOS by Lloyds TSB looks set to be a done deal, Scottish jobs are, for the time being, the most secure. But this hasn’t stopped employees sending out speculative CVs or industry players pushing for other options. One of the clauses in the formal takeover proposal of HBOS is that “the management focus is to keep jobs in Scotland”, sparking rumours that the bulk of the... Read more

Scotland’s financial services employers are eager to add staff, but there are signs that the staff may not be there to add. Two recent studies underscore the health of Scotland’s finance job market. A November 2005 survey by Joslin Rowe, the middle and back office recruiter, found 82% of Scottish finance companies surveyed planned to add staff in 2006, the highest number for the past five years. Meanwhile, a retrospective study of... Read more

Scotland’s fund managers and private brokers have been adding charities specialists. Is more hiring on the way? Diane Wilde, formerly of Aberdeen Asset Management, has joined Scottish investment firm Gerrard. Her former employer has launched three new charities funds and announced a new head of its charities division. And Edinburgh-based Cornelian Asset Managers has bolstered its charities arm with June Jessop from Adam & Co. Wilde told The Scotsman that... Read more

Glasgow may be growing fast as a financial services centre, but Edinburgh still offers many of the best paid money management jobs. “Edinburgh is still the natural home for Scotland’s institutional business,” says Richard Fletcher-Jones, a Glaswegian now working as a financial services headhunter in Edinburgh. “Glasgow will have to work very hard to compete.” The most recent survey on employment in Scotland underscores the significance of the financial services industry in... Read more

For London-based asset managers stuck on packed commuter trains on dark winter’s mornings, emigrating to Edinburgh may seem distinctly appealing. Early hours in the Scottish capital are equally black, but thanks to Edinburgh’s spatial compactness, long (and crowded) commutes are rare. Willie Watt, chief executive of Martin Currie, the boutique investment manager, is among those benefiting from the pleasant environment. “One of the great things about living and working in Edinburgh... Read more

One in ten City of London workers would move to Edinburgh, a recent eFinancialCareers.com survey of 1407 financial markets professionals found. But only if they could continue doing what they love doing. Some might say that’s making money. A majority (60.2%) of respondents, however, would take a reduction in pay to keep their current roles but do them north of Hadrian’s Wall. When asked how much of a cut, here is... Read more

It’s official: the Scottish and Irish financial services job markets are hotter than in England – but only for temporary roles. A new study by financial services recruiter the Blomfield Group shows temporary staff in Edinburgh and Dublin can find roles more quickly than their counterparts in London. While Scottish and Irish financial services temps can walk into new roles in an average of just three and two days respectively, their London... Read more

Scotland might not be playing in the World Cup in Germany but its financial services sector could yet score a hat-trick this summer. Its three chances at goal? Up to £30 billion of funds could be returning to Scotland to be managed if talks between Resolution and Santander succeed. The Spanish parent company of Abbey is in talks with Resolution to sell Abbey’s closed life insurance funds. Scottish Mutual, Scottish Provident and Abbey... Read more

New research shows a dramatic increase in the number of women landing jobs in financial services in Scotland over the last five years. In 2001, only 33.3% of the people placed in banking jobs by the recruitment firm Blomfield Group were women. Now in 2006, women comprise 49.6% of new hires. Women have increased their ranks in the Scottish financial services industry more successfully than women across the UK as a whole,... Read more

It used to be the case that a stint in London was the key to career progression within financial services. Not any more, Scottish recruiters say. Alex Philips, managing director of recruitment firm Morgan McKinley’s Edinburgh office says that financial services employees in Scotland don’t necessarily aspire to go to London. “It is not a necessity for people to go to London to develop their careers, as there is ample opportunity... Read more

London-based stockbroker Williams de Broë has closed its Birmingham office and is set to close its Scottish office. Scotland on Sunday reports the Edinburgh office, which deals primarily with mid to small cap institutional investors and research, will close in the next few months. Staff at the Edinburgh office are said to have been offered jobs in London, but it is unclear whether they will take the company up on the offer. Williams... Read more