Where cloud computing will hit financial services

Cloud computing might not be about to create bountiful employment opportunities any time soon, but concerns have been raised about possible threats it poses to certain techies' positions.

Exactly who may fall by the wayside isn't yet clear - after all, cloud computing is still gaining traction in financial services and the debate still rages about whether it will be wholeheartedly embraced.

Still, Wall Street & Technology/Information Week has produced some interesting research about just how widespread cloud computing is within financial services currently and in what sectors it's most likely to be deployed.

As the chart below shows, those IT employees in front office positions needn't break out into a nervous sweat about any threat cloud computing could pose to their livelihood.

The back and middle office are the biggest users, while 43% of respondents to its survey said there were no plans to use it for trading applications.

All this is not to say that cloud computing won't take off in financial services - 40% of respondents said they already used some type of cloud, while another 31% said they are considering it.