Wall Street's biggest hiring trends: what insiders and recruiters are saying
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Insider Inc.
Jun 30, 2021, 22:38 IST
Wall Street recruiters have had a busy 2021.
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Recruiters have been busy making hires in hot areas like healthcare-focused investment banking.
Traders have also been on the move after a massive year of revenue hauls.
From trading to investment banking, these are the biggest hiring trends on Wall Street.
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Insider has been tracking Wall Street hiring and talking with recruiters and insiders about the biggest trends.
Top healthcare bankers are in high demand, with one recruiter describing search requests from clients as being "extremely, extremely active." Banks are racing to lateral hire more analysts. And credit traders are locking in guaranteed pay at new gigs after putting up a big year.
From junior investment banking talent to senior dealmakers and traders, here are the spaces to watch - and who's been on the move recently.
Wall Street banks can't get enough junior talent
Investment banks are struggling with massive workloads and a shortage of junior bankers. Now, banks are battling for lateral hires and senior bankers are having to step in to do work less experienced bankers normally handle.
Kim Freehill, a senior partner at New York-based recruiting firm FSJ Partners, which works on behalf of middle-market investment banks, told Insider she's never been so swamped with inquiries from clients.
Credit was one of the strongest performers across trading desks last year, as intervention from the Federal Reserve, wide movements in spreads, and an onslaught of debt issuance spurred client activity.
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Traders have plenty of motivation to entertain offers now. Even if they received great compensation this year, performance will almost certainly drop compared with a frothy 2020. So rather than wait around for a smaller bonus, some see the logic of locking in a juicy guarantee while demand is hot, according to senior headhunters.
"They had ridiculously high revenue last year, and it's not going to match this year," one senior fixed-income recruiter said. "They're capitalizing on big comp numbers."
Charles Anderson, who leads Heidrick & Struggles' corporate- and investment-banking recruiting business, in May described the demand from clients for healthcare searches as being "extremely, extremely active."
Much of the momentum has been driven by demand for specialists who can help companies at the intersection of healthcare and other tech verticals, such as payment technology.
Credit Suisse traders and bankers are jumping ship - here's where they're going
Nearly 50 senior employees have parted ways with Credit Suisse during recent months, according to hiring announcements by other banks, a review of reported exits, and people familiar with the moves.
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