Asset Management
Hiring trends follow industry trends
We’ve been specialists in Asset Management for over 15 years, recruiting for junior, mid and senior-level vacancies across Europe, predominantly in Luxembourg.
During this time, we’ve witnessed a gradual shift in hiring trends that have closely followed industry trends. The enormous growth in regulation (in response to the financial crisis of 2008) is still one of the main trends impacting recruitment in Luxembourg today. Once both the AIFMD (Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive) and the new Management Company (ManCo) regulations for both UCITS and AIFs were released, every major asset manager wishing to distribute out of Luxembourg had to have a sizable operation on the ground.
That meant they had to be sufficiently staffed with senior, C-suite personnel, who would make decisions locally as a part of a global team, bringing strong knowledge of Luxembourg as well as the wider European distribution framework.
Sufficiently staffed
The CSSF also expects firms to have relevant mid-level staff, with good local work experience in line with Luxembourg regulation. Gone are the days of letterbox companies, empty board rooms and decisions made overseas. Every asset manager was suddenly hiring in multiples.
Growth in third party Man Cos and Luxembourg
Then came Brexit, further complicating the recruitment puzzle. Asset Managers rushed to ensure they had a physical European staff presence that allowed the continuation of EU investors into their funds.
We saw a leap in the number of jobs available at third party management companies. The number of third-party businesses on the ground also grew. Many fund managers understandably didn’t want to build a whole new operation from scratch in a country they didn’t know (especially one that was very different legally to the UK and US), and so the third-party ManCo business flourished.
A few years ago, the UK Asset Management sector didn’t mind very much when Luxembourg grew so quickly as a back office, but now with additional regulation, and Brexit, opportunities for the workforce here will continue to grow. Luxembourg has asserted itself as the leading middle-office jurisdiction of the world for cross-border funds, overseeing subscriptions, trades and safeguarding investors’ capital for more than €4 trillion net assets under management.
Now with the pressure of Brexit, we start to see the next step for Luxembourg emerging: more front office vacancies, including jobs in marketing, sales, fund distribution and finally, fund management. Where quality jobs move, so do high performing staff, starting with European staff who are missing the mainland – both during Coronavirus, but also after Brexit.