Financial news Singapore: Job market news & employment trends for the financial recruitment industry in Singapore

Tianjin and Shenzhen have recently become important back-office locations as foreign banks expand in China. Firms such as HSBC, Standard Chartered, RBS and DBS are recruiting more back-office staff in both locations, mainly at junior to middle level. But the two cities have found themselves in favour for different reasons. “Tianjin is pushing its Binhai New Area to become a regional financial centre and the government provides favourable policies to attract financial intuitions.... Read more

The economy may be recovering fast from the recession, but companies here are still cautious about their bottom lines. And as a result, new expatriates are no longer offered the sort of packages their peers once enjoyed. According to headhunters BT spoke to, expat compensation packages have become more localised in content and structure. (Asia One) Newbridge Capital, the Asian unit of US buyout firm TPG Capital, sold the remainder of... Read more

A hiring manager asked a candidate this question during an interview for a management accountant position in the finance department of a securities and derivatives exchange in Asia. The question in full If you had to pick a key on the keyboard to describe yourself, which one would it be and why? What the hiring manager thinks are the best and worst answers There are really no right or wrong responses, but... Read more

Qualified accountants are creeping into a more diverse and interesting range of roles within banks in Asia these days, and the functions which require their skills are enjoying a steady flow of vacancies. But banks still have demanding recruitment requirements. Accountants can be found not just in core finance positions, but also in operations and project management jobs. There is a growing trend for them to add MBAs and CFAs to... Read more

M&A professionals are finally becoming more in demand as Asian deal making rises close to levels last seen in the pre-GFC boom. But because banks have recently been so focussed on ECM, they are now facing serious skill shortages in M&A. According to data tracker Dealogic, Asia Pacific companies have made US$132.7bn of offers for companies outside their home country so far this year, compared with US$142.7bn in the same period... Read more

If you’ve never applied for a job at a Chinese bank before, what should you watch out for? And how does the application and interview process differ from that of foreign firms? First of all, the large state-owned Chinese banks – such as ICBC and the Bank of China – do not typically hire externally for senior roles, preferring to recruit graduates and promote them until they reach management. However, commercial... Read more

A hiring manager asked a candidate this question during an interview for a C#/.NET developer role in a large international bank in Asia. The question in full Would you be able to work, code and deliver if I tell you that Google is banned in this organisation? What the hiring manager thinks are the best and worst answers Best: “No” Worst: Saying “yes” and then not being able to answer the most basic object-oriented programming... Read more

Get made redundant in London, send your CV to Singapore, and hear nothing back – a familiar story in 2009. These days, however, Asian-market wannabes are having more luck finding work as recruitment rises in the region. But while talent shortages in certain sector mean banks are taking on more foreigners, the overall trend is localisation, says Nick Poole, executive director, Tiglon Partners Asia. “The education system is producing a... Read more

China's Big Four banks have an average of about 20,000 branches each across the country. Agriculture Bank of China (ABC), for example, has more than 23,000 outlets covering nearly every rural district in the PRC. These networks create a large associated human capital cost because the banks also have to maintain tens of thousands of branch managers. Promotion, hiring and retention are all on a grand scale. But luckily for local banks,... Read more

Priority, privilege, preferred (we’ll use the former): whatever you call them, these bankers are in high demand and short supply as local and international firms target the rising wealth of Asia’s middle classes. Banks are battling with each other for staff and when that doesn’t work, they sometimes even search outside the financial sector. “Recruitment is very busy at the moment for these revenue-generating roles. You can’t bring in foreign talent... Read more

Wondering what is out there for you? Well so is everyone else. As the optimism and activity in the job market continues, the gainfully employed and the unfortunately retrenched are going for it. It in this case means pretty much every job they can lay their hands, eyes and ears on. If you are a headhunter like me, you have your fair share of candidates who have already spoken to,... Read more

"I'm looking for a job in the areas of fixed income sales or product development. I would like to try to find a positon in Hong Kong to gain some overseas exposure." Does he have a hope? Read the CV and leave your comments below. EDUCATIONUniversity in Singapore (Aug 2004 to Jul 2008) • Bachelor of Business Management • Double major in Finance and Corporate Communications Business School in a European capital city (Jan... Read more

The stereotype of the private banker in Asia is not the grey-headed Swiss-style industry veteran, but the attractive young charmer. Although banks have very recently been scrambling for senior relationship managers, their former hiring polices have created a largely youthful wealth-management workforce. Just ask headhunters, many of whom say that in Singapore they have dealt with fully fledged private bankers in their late 20s or early 30s. These people... Read more

This question was asked at an interview for an analyst-level position in the property division of a large US bank. The question in full: You’re a team leader and you’re in charge of a small team of two. A financial tsunami strikes again and your boss orders you to fire one person to reduce costs. One of your employees is a smart guy, but he always completes his work late and doesn’t... Read more