Singapore retail and wealth banks shun digital as they ramp up Q2 hiring

Relationship managers in bancassurance were in hot demand.

Singapore retail and wealth management banks stepped up their hiring activities in Q2 across front to middle back office operations, according to HR consultant Randstad.

Relationship Managers (RMs) and product specialists selling bancassurance and investment products were highly sought-after as Singapore’s advisory business remains relatively insulated from the automation trend with manpower proving necessary to propel the business forward.

“Whilst banks are driving towards digitisation to replace over-the-counter service, the advisory business continues to rely on their sales force to help them attain market share,” Randstad added.

Also read: Banks are at the forefront of Singapore's upskilling charge

There was also strong demand for experienced acquisition bankers with strong focus on cash products and loans amidst robust demand for loans, trade finance, treasury, transactional and investment banking.

As RMs focus more on client acquisition and marketing, there was also an increase in sales support such as Relationship Officers to support client onboarding, know-your-customer (KYC) review and credit related work.

Unlike their retail and wealth peers, institutional banks held back on hiring activities as they targeted specific growth areas including investment management, hedge funds and private equity. Fund administrator providers serving real estate and private equity demand are poised to be in hot demand due to limited talent pools.

“Financial professionals with experience in regulatory reporting were highly sought-after in both project capacity and BAU reporting. We also saw an increase demand for financial professionals in Management Information System,” Randstad noted.

Contracting also remained a popular hiring option in Q2 across corporate, private and investment banks. Third party outsourcing also emerged as another prominent trend as banks tapped on companies that had more expertise to save costs.