MAS helps banks to hire again

There is light at the end of the tunnel for fresh graduates looking for employment in the financial sector, thanks to a Singapore Government-backed plan to boost recruitment.

Standard Chartered has to date hired more than 100 graduates under the new Finance Graduate Immersion Programme, an initiative of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). The first batch joined in July and the second in August, according to a spokesperson for the bank.

"This programme gives fresh graduates, like me, the opportunity to work in the financial industry," says Shireene Kan, a recent Stand Chart recruit from the National University of Singapore.

Citigroup in Singapore is looking to hire 200 grads, while Deutsche Bank will also recruit, but hasn't finalised its numbers. "We do have MAS approval for certain aspects of hiring, and are awaiting approval from them for some remaining aspects," says a Deutsche spokesperson.

Goldman Sachs and the Singaporean banks, DBS, UOB and OCBC, are also involved in the MAS scheme, but they declined to comment.

The Singapore Government has allocated S$15m for the MAS programme, which subsidises the pay of new graduates for one year.