Bonuses and pay rises on the cards for Ireland’s fund accountants...in a bid to stop them leaving the country

Bonuses are never big for fund accountants in Ireland, largely because it’s a back office rather than revenue generating role, but the modest payout they receive annually is set to increase this year.

Before you either heat up with excitement or get your bonus banker bashing club out, it’s worth noting that this increase still means that the average payment will be €5.6k, according to research by recruiters Marks Sattin. This is up from e5.1k last year.

Even here, though, only 62% of fund accountants in Ireland expect to receive a bonus at all (up from 52% in 2011).

Salaries are also on the up – after years of stagnation – largely because more fund accountants are moving to opportunities in the UK, Sydney and Luxembourg, says the research. For the first time in a while, fund houses are suddenly facing a dearth of talent and 70% of fund accountants surveyed by Marks Sattin believe that they’re likely to receive a pay rise of up to 11% this year.

“This is not before time,” says Matthew Fitzpatrick, senior manager at Marks Sattin. “Many firms will have implemented salary freezes and cancelled bonuses in the years 2008-10 in a cautious environment so seeing this sector bouncing back is hugely encouraging.”