eFinancialCareers

With booming conditions globally, is an MBA still required to get to the top of the pile? Richard Lyons, from executive search firm Carr Lyons, says that MBAs are more valuable at the associate level than at the assistant-director of VP level. At the associate level an MBA from a good university will separate people from the crowd. At the higher end, employers are looking more for solid experience in their... Read more

RBC Capital Markets is the latest to establish an infrastructure finance team in Sydney, which was announced on Wednesday. Reuters reports that the new team of four infrastructure specialists come from Rothschilds. Who is on the new RBC team? Dominic Hudson comes on board as managing director and head of infrastructure, Stan Nikiforou as director, Tim Foy as vice president, and Matthew McKenna as manager. Salaries have been increasing in recent years,... Read more

Paul Masi, as Merrill Lynch’s new chief executive officer and country head for its Australian operations, shares striking similarities to his counterpart at UBS. Announced Wednesday, Masi’s appointment is effective immediately, following Kevin Skelton stepping down from the role. Having joined Merrill Lynch in Australia in 2000, Masi was previously country co-head and head of Australasian equities before relocating to Hong Kong in 2003 to become head of Asia Pacific region equity... Read more

Although the local economy continues to grow, and company profits make new record highs, increasingly volatile market conditions may result in the need for distressed debt experts in the near future. Susan Moore, from search firm Jon Michel, says suitable candidates are thin on the ground in Australia. Those people with the required skills have either moved into other areas of finance or headed to Asia, as the Australian distressed debt... Read more

Which is the hottest area of Australian finance recruitment right now? Look no further than leveraged finance. With buyouts a big feature of the mergers and acquisitions scene down under this year, both foreign and domestic banks are in the market for leverage specialists as part of structured debt teams. Germany’s HypoVereinsbank and Mizuho of Japan are believed to be recruiting while another German bank, WestLB, recently hired a specialist from... Read more

Australia’s private equity market may have been running hot for the past two years but local and international firms are still bolstering their teams, especially on the research and modelling side. Much of the recent hiring, recruiters say, has targeted investment analysts and operational staff as teams are built out to help manage deals already done. “Many private equity firms are now starting to look more like investment banking teams,” says... Read more

When the going gets tough, wannabe bankers start showing their moves. Over the past few weeks the global financial community has been following one UBS candidate’s innovative approach to nabbing a job. His was no ordinary application – it featured an 11 page CV and a sharply edited video featuring him ballroom dancing, breaking bricks with his bare hands. Observers are treated to nuggets of wisdom like ‘To achieve success you... Read more

Soaring Australian private equity activity is prompting Australian-based investment banks to boost their financial sponsor teams. All leading investment banks tell us they have and are continuing to build their financial sponsor teams which help private equity firms arrange and execute M&A deals. Scott Perkins, the Sydney-based head of Global Banking for Australia and New Zealand at Deutsche Bank, has a nine person team and says he is still recruiting. “We... Read more

Australia’s infrastructure specialists are being pursued for roles in Asian financial centres. In particular, Babcock & Brown is currently setting up a presence in Hong Kong. Deutsche Bank and Morgan Stanley are also said to be building up infrastructure fund teams, sources say. “Major houses are starting to realise the benefits of making a long term investment in infrastructure funds,” says CK Wan, a director covering investment banking and private equity... Read more

Bankers on Wall Street and in the City of London are expecting bumper bonuses this year. How does the Sydney market compare? Quite well, seems to be the answer. Australia may have a market cap of just US$854bn – 20 times smaller than the US, but our research suggests financial services salaries in the market punch above their weight. According to the office of New York State Comptroller, Alan Hevesi, finance... Read more

Australia’s banks have been quietly trying to hire more women, but the industry is still a bastion of masculinity. “We have some employers who are still concerned that their executive ranks remain something of a boys club,” says Matthew Gowan, a Melbourne-based specialist in banking at recruitment group Hays. “They say if they have male and female candidates of the same quality, then they may pick the female to balance things... Read more

There are 18 much richer Australians this week, and it’s not down to a lottery win. Goldman Sachs JBWere has promoted18 people to become Australian managing directors (MDs) - nearly doubling the 22 it had. Rumour has it they’ll each be on at least US$1.5m (AU$2.0m). What's going on? Craig Drummond, Chief Operating Officer at Goldman Sachs JBWere Sydney says the appointments "reflect the depth of talent and the significant contribution... Read more

Prime brokerage jobs are increasing along with Australia' s booming hedge fund industry. Rick Jansz, managing consultant at BSI People, says prime brokerage is one of the hot spots of the Australian market, along with M&A and private equity. “There has been a lot of hiring over the last six months, and we’re about to go through the last phase of that as firms bulk up their operations to meet demand,”... Read more

Investment banks aren’t best known as cuddly employers. But when it comes to flexible working arrangements, even high-powered financiers are getting more leeway these days. Take UBS for example, which offers its employees a whole range of flexible alternatives, from the ability to work from home on some days, to staggered hour arrangements, job sharing, and part-time options. Mike Davies, UBS’s head of human resources, says workers at all levels are... Read more

What if you're not satisfied when you get your bonus? Could you negotiate for more? Success is rare, and it could be a dangerous path to pursue. “In 20 years at Goldman, I never once saw anyone renegotiate their bonus after it had been announced, ever,” says one ex-head of department at the bank, which is paying US$16bn in bonuses this year. “Bonuses are decided in October and it’s not done... Read more

Have visa, will travel. The US has emerged as yet another destination for travel-hungry Australian finance professionals, adding to the talent shortage that is plaguing the country in the accounting and financial markets. The signing last year of the Australia-US Free Trade Agreement means that young Australian professionals no longer need to enter the green card lottery to gain visas to the US. Instead, the E-3 visa programme has been expanded... Read more

ANZ Bank is about to embark on a major hiring program to support its expansion into Asia. Other banks are expected to follow close on its heels. ANZ CEO John McFarlane is behind the new push into Asia, and said that in the New Year the bank will launch a recruitment drive aimed at the postgraduate market. “We’re looking to recruit a substantial number of graduates with Asian language skills or... Read more