The News: I-Banks Repopulate HR Teams, a Precursor of Broad-Based Hiring

Wall Street has stepped up hiring in-house recruiters, talent managers and trainers, a sign the industry's wider hiring pickup has legs.

Expanding or upgrading HR teams at Credit Suisse, RBC Capital Markets and BNP Paribas suggest "investment banks are about to step up hiring dramatically," Investment Dealers' Digest reports.

RBC, which became a primarily dealer last year and is undergoing a massive expansion in various business lines, has increased its New York internal recruitment team from two to six, according to a Wall Street recruitment professional, who asked not to be named.

A recent RBC addition is Jason Wiggin, whose focus is lateral hires in the investment banking and municipal finance businesses. He was previously a recruiter at Barclays Capital, Lehman and Citigroup.

Banks need HR pros to find, process and integrate new staff. The effect operated in reverse during the downturn, when HR departments were pared back in line with shrunken hiring and broad staff layoffs.

External recruiter Melissa Brophy, whose firm Maximum Management Corp. specializes in recruiting HR professionals, says the big banks are "very active" in her segment at present. "We tend to view HR hiring as three to six months ahead of the general economy, and we started seeing hiring improve in December," she told IDD.

According to Brophy, in addition to recruiters, investment banks have increased interest in data analysts and employees who focus on compensation issues, as well as training and education. The growth in training and education is an especially positive development, she said, because it shows financial institutions are looking to expand the skill base of their employees.

Do In-House Recruiters Presage Hiring Wave? [IDD, via FierceFinance]

BofA Team Splits Off to Start P.E. Firm [NY Times]

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Although the "fat-finger error" thesis is largely discredited, the news here is that Thursday's stock-market mayhem might encourage lawmakers and/or regulators clamp down on high-frequency trading systems, one of Wall Street's fastest-growing segments for hiring in recent years.

SEC: Broker-Dealers Should Be Held To Fiduciary Standard [MarketWatch]

The proposed change would prompt dealers to bring on yet more compliance professionals.

How 'Hard to Fathom' Derivatives Rule Emerged in U.S. Senate [BusinessWeek]

Movie Futures and Other Exotic Plays Lure Main Street Investors [BusinessWeek]

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