Is working in finance bad for your marriage?

And is marriage good for your career?

Alchemy Partners boss Jon Moulton says the personal affairs of his employees become more complex the more money they have to spend. An article in yesterday's Financial Times suggests hedge fund bosses are suffering a similar problem - wealthy hedge funders are apparently using postnuptial agreements to insure their finances against marital strife.

One (divorced) ex-banker tells us that working in finance takes its toll on relationships, but says money's not the issue: "There's a huge amount of pressure. Bankers are working in the office until 7pm or 8pm at night and then off entertaining clients, while their spouses are just spending money and getting lonely. It's hard to keep a relationship on track - people diverge."

This is a shame, given a claim in this week's Economist that marriage is a "wealth generating institution." The magazine says people who marry and stay that way end up on average four times better off than those who remain stubbornly single.

Anecdotally, our contact also says people who stick with their partners outshine bachelors and spinsters: "My experience at Goldman was that people at the top had fairly stable marital relationships - but that when they blew up, they blew up spectacularly."

But he adds alpha bankers may best off with compliant spouses who are content to potter around the house: "You need someone who's tolerant of punishing travel schedules and is willing to be there at home."