Riches bring smiles to private bankers

With Ireland's millionaires multiplying faster than rabbits, jobs for private bankers are going through the roof.

Last year the Irish became the richest people in Europe, according to a report from Bank of Ireland Private Bank. And our wealth is predicted to nearly double from €812bn in 2005 to €1,556bn in 2015.

Ireland's 33,000 millionaires are overwhelming the country's private banks.

James Hayes, manager of banking and financial services at Robert Walters, says demand for experienced private bankers is huge in Ireland and far exceeds supply.

Kevin Quinn, director of private banking at Bank of Ireland, says bankers with specialist skills in property, client management or equity markets can demand a premium.

Bank of Ireland and Allied Irish both operate private banks. The sector is also home to numerous boutiques, including Dublin-based IIB Bank, and to long-established private client brokers such as Davy. International banks like Goldman Sachs, Merrill Lynch, HSBC and Deutsche Bank have also been building in Ireland's booming private banking sector.

A senior executive at Paragon Search and Selection says Ireland's high-net-worth clients are increasingly diversifying their portfolios away from the property sector and are looking at other asset classes.

Paragon's senior executive says an experienced private banker can earn €90k to €120k, while real high fliers can take home salaries of up to €140k. Bonuses for senior private bankers/wealth managers are coming in at around 100% of salary.