Around the World: Standard Chartered big on Africa; Nordic private equity boom
Standard Chartered is still hiring and growing in Africa
As developed markets are in the eye of the storm, it is a good time to be in emerging markets and to have "multiple growth engines", as Peter Sands, CEO of Standard Chartered, puts it. At least "if one or two run slow others will be running fast." That is why analysts see the bank as a safe haven and praise it for its 'superior growth prospects'. [South Africa]
Accounting firms are hiring massively
Banks are firing, accountancy firms are hiring. Accountancy firms are not just hiring in small numbers; they are hiring in huge numbers. Deloitte has declared its intention to hire 68,000 people over the next four years. That's equivalent to nearly two Goldman Sachs' worth of employees. This year it hired 49,000 people. PricewaterhouseCoopers is equally ebullient. It hired 45,000 people in the 12 months to last June. [UK]
Aviva may be about to cut Irish staff, but it's very much the exception
The insurance sector in Ireland not only survived, but excelled through the financial crisis. International firms were attracted to the country by its favorable corporate tax rate and access to high quality, and cheaper, talent. Those companies that arrived inevitably looked locally to build their headcount. But are cracks finally beginning to show? [Ireland]
Nordic private equity is hot, and hiring
In terms of personnel the numbers are small, but Nordic private equity firms are buoyant - and hiring. Swedish PE and venture capital firms reported record levels of buyout investments last year, and activity is being sustained into this year, according to the Swedish Private Equity & Venture Capital Association. Healthcare, cleantech, consumer goods, IT companies and services have all been "hot" over the past two years. [Sweden]
This week it's FICC redundancies at Credit Suisse; last week it was FICC redundancies at BarCap; next week it may be FICC annihilation at UBS
The great fixed income currencies and commodities retreat is underway. After months of consultation, people are actually losing their jobs. In the last couple of weeks, recruiters claim around 60 people have been plucked from BarCap's FICC business and tossed onto the employment market. "It seemed to be a question of last in first out at BarCap," claims one fixed income markets headhunter. [UK]
Here's a family-friendly career path in Asian wealth management for you to consider
Family offices in Asia aren't yet a massive phenomenon. Of the 6,000 or so offices globally, only 500 are based in this region, reported The New York Times earlier this month. But these offices are certainly expanding and so are their staffing needs. Several banks - HSBC, Credit Suisse, UBS and Citigroup - have all either established or expanded their family services in Asia over the last few months. [Hong Kong]
International banks have started making redundancies in the Gulf
Inevitably, it's started happening; international investment banks that have been making thousands of redundancies globally have started trimming their Middle Eastern teams. Nomura has shut its regional equity research team, while both Deutsche Bank and Credit Suisse have laid of senior MENA-focused research analysts, according to Reuters. We also understand that UBS has made three members of its regional research team redundant.
How bad is it really for leading French banks and all who work there?
French banks are unhappy places to be. The respective share prices of SocGen and BNP have fallen 18% and 25% since last Friday and anyone working in fixed income sales and trading at either bank in London has reason to feel great apprehension. Today has been an especially bad day for BNP. [UK]
Could it be? A sector with bigger bonuses, rising salaries and prolific job creation
If job creation has been positive within Ireland's funds industry in 2011, the next six months look set to be even better - 1,000 new roles have been predicted. What's more pay is on the up and companies are even paying (whisper it) bonuses. Is all this too good to be true?
[Ireland]
Why holding a CFA will greatly enhance your chances of getting a job at the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority
Relatively speaking, with around 1,000 charter-holders, the CFA is not a particularly prevalent qualification within the Middle East. If you have aspirations to work for the world's largest sovereign wealth fund in world, however, you should consider undertaking it. The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority employs 93 CFA charter-holders, which is the largest number of any organization in the Middle East. [Middle East]
Professional financial services investigators are wanted to earn large six figure packages
The FSA is already struggling to hold on to staff, but it's a little ironic that new, more lucrative, jobs created within consultancies working on external investigations on behalf of the regulator could see yet more people depart. Both Big Four and more niche consultancies are building their risk and regulation teams ahead of an expected surge in section 166 orders from the FSA. [UK]
