Three interesting areas where there WILL be hiring in 2011

It's still early in the year. Banks are still waiting to assess the post-bonus shakeout and finalise hiring plans. However, some things are becoming certain. According to recruiters and banks' own pronouncements, there will be hiring in the following areas during 2011.

1) Cash equities

While equity derivatives hiring (save ETFs) is expected to be restrainedly 'selective' this year, cash equities hiring isn't.

"There will be a lot of movement this year in equity research," predicts one of the top headhunters in the area. "There's a lot going on. We've got resignations due as soon as bonuses are paid."

Although Lloyds has finally closed its equities business this week, equities hiring elsewhere has already started. Witness Credit Suisse's extraction of an entire team of banking analysts from JPMorgan this week, at an alleged (estimated) cost in excess of 2m.

JPMorgan is expected to hire to fill this gap. Meanwhile, RBC is building in equities, Exane plans to hire around 200 people for cash equities over the next three years, HSBC is supposedly building its equities business, Citigroup is expected to hire researchers, and Credit Suisse, "still has holes to fill."

Then there's Jefferies, which is still expected to build its equities business this year and which this week hired a head of European volatility trading from Macquarie.

2) Coverage banking

2011 will be year of the coverage banker who can bring clients for both M&A/advisory deals and for the 'corporate banking franchise.'

Citigroup has said it wants to hire, as many as 20 senior corporate and investment bankers in Europe in the first half of 2011. Bank of America also wants 30 senior coverage bankers in EMEA. And JPMorgan's focus is on building its corporate banking franchise, where it says there's still work to do.

Paul Hunt, chief executive of recruitment firm Healy Hunt, says there was a lot of corporate banking hiring in 2010 and that some of those moves will only happen this year. "We've made a number of placements which will take effect as soon as the candidate has received his or her bonus," says Hunt. "Some of them have start dates in July."

3) Regulatory capital expertise

Earlier this month, it emerged that Sally Dewar, former head of risk at the FSA, had joined JPMorgan as an MD to coordinate its response to regulatory change, reporting to the head of risk.

Dewar's new job is suggestive of a trend.

"All of a sudden we've started getting a new kind of role," says Priya Mariannie, a senior risk consultant at recruiter PSD Group. "Banks want people who can sit in the risk team, manage the relationship with the FSA and calculate the implications of regulatory change on market risk and credit risk."

Mariannie says the ideal candidate has been at the FSA for a few years, but that banks are prepared to be flexible. If you have worked at the FSA, you can command a premium. Packages go from 50-100k, with the latter only paid to managers.