eFinancialCareers

Software companies are flocking to Dubai, fuelling demand for IT staff in the Emirate. Recruiters say the need for techies has rocketed in the last year with requests coming in thick and fast for security and storage specialists as well as system architects and project managers. Damon Chapple, director of IT recruiters Pathway Resourcing, says his firm entered the Gulf market six months ago because of such high demand. "Demand comes from... Read more

Gulf-based private equity staff are already paid more than colleagues in New York and London. And they could be on track to earn even more. Local recruiters say demand for private equity (PE) professionals has swollen in recent months as more and more money finds its way into the region. “Private equity has really been hotting up since January,” says Emma Hackforth, founder of Dubai-based recruitment firm Matchsticks. “The US fear... Read more

Gulf banks are increasingly eager to tie the knot, and Financial Institutions Group bankers with local contacts may yet be needed to make some introductions. Nuptials in the Gulf’s fragmented and over-banked market have already begun, with the National Bank of Dubai and Emirates Bank International in talks to create a new regional giant with US$45bn in assets. Gulf recruiters say Financial Institutions Group (FIG) bankers aren’t hot property yet, but big... Read more

Compliance professionals are about to become a hot commodity in the Gulf. Right now, headhunters say only the biggest banks like HSBC have large compliance departments in their Gulf operations. But this is all set to change as smaller banks adjust to new international banking regulations. “Local banks have to increase their demand for compliance people… I expect the market is going to grow very quickly,” says Samar El Gazar, managing... Read more

Saudi Arabia may not sound like the most enticing place for expats, but it’s attracting increasing numbers of them to its growing banking sector. Headhunters report gargantuan growth in Saudi finance jobs. Given banks’ interest in the kingdom, this is hardly surprising. Deutsche Bank, JPMorgan, HSBC and BNP Paribas are already there. Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley have teamed up with local Saudi Bank in the past three months, and UBS... Read more

What with luxury apartments, marinas and theme parks, Dubai’s real estate sector is booming. And so is demand for real estate bankers in the Emirates. Local and international firms and banks need people with the experience to get results. “The sector is expanding massively,” says Stuart Dale, a consultant at London recruitment firm EM Group. “You can see projects going up everywhere.” Dubai-based real-estate giant Emaar Properties is building the US$20bn... Read more

Dubai’s expanding financial services sector needs lawyers to grease its wheels. “There is an ever-increasing demand for financial lawyers in Dubai,” says Nicholas Lloyd, managing director of executive search firm Hogarth Davies Lloyd. "There is a significant amount of work emanating from within the region which in turn has seen more and more law firms setting up in the region." In previous years, most of the legal work in Dubai was handled... Read more

Private banks in the Gulf are eager to stock up with private bankers, but only if they come equipped with a raft of high net worth clients. “Demand for private bankers has been increasing in the past 18 months…. There is greater opportunity to put money here. The money from the oil boom is staying here,” says James Mackenzie, managing director of recruitment firm Mackenzie Executive Search. “The banks want people who... Read more

Are you a junior corporate financier with a few years’ experience under your belt? You could be just what Gulf banks are looking for. “Demand is very high in corporate finance for people who have two to three years' experience,” says Samar El Gazar, MD of Dubai-based recruitment firm Leaders Solutions. “Local as well as international banks are requesting these people.” Who’s hiring? Goldman Sachs is reportedly acquiring a stake in an... Read more

Investment banks and hedge funds in Dubai are frantically searching for mid-ranking project managers to work on new IT systems. “The market is definitely booming,” says Emma Hackforth, talent manager at Matchsticks, a Dubai-based recruitment agency. “There’s high demand for technical specialists from investment banks and hedge funds.” Recruiters say the favoured hire is someone with between five and seven years’ experience of managing IT projects in the financial services industry. They’ll... Read more

The dollar might have hit new lows last month, but that’s not stopping Gulf employers hiring new staff from Europe. Companies need specific skills and if they have to pay more for them, that’s what they’ll do, recruiters say. The mighty dollar’s drop against the euro and sterling has left employers in the Gulf – where currencies are dollar-linked and pay agreed in dollar sums – forking out more to offer... Read more