We’re pleased to present Sanderson’s brand-new Hiring Trends Report focusing on Digital, Technology, Change and Transformation hiring in the Financial Services sector during 2025.

This much anticipated report provides an overview of which roles saw hiring surges and the most demand during 2025, insight into hiring conditions throughout the UK, our expert opinion on where demand might be headed for 2026 as well as data to help guide companies on where they can gain competitive advantages in the market to help them obtain the best candidates out there.

The beginning of 2025 saw many employers demonstrate hesitancy towards their permanent hiring, largely driven by budget restrictions and wider uncertainty in the economic environment. However by the end of the year thanks to factors like a prioritisation of digital transformation causing a surge in demand for AI skillsets, we were seeing hiring conditions improve significantly, even a permanent market that was 44% more active year on year by December 2025.

With market-wide data indicating that 2026 should open with more a more optimistic hiring outlook, now may be the time to reassess your hiring strategies, enhance your understanding of emerging technologies and then address your skills gaps with the right blend of permanent or contractor talent.

This report, using data from VacancySoft and LinkedIn and reviewed by Sanderson’s market-leading experts, reflects on how these trends have shaped hiring throughout the Financial Services sector in 2025, as well as providing predictions on how it may evolve throughout the remainder of 2026.

Do you feel ready for the Umbrella Reforms due to come into effect later this Spring?

Don’t worry, we’re here to help you feel more prepared!

You might have seen that last year we hosted a webinar with PayStream where our Recruitment Services Managing Director William Boney and Head of Operations & Organisational Change Anna Kramer sat down with the PayStream CEO Tony Hodkinson for an informative discussion all about the upcoming tax legislation changes and the Employment Rights Bill 2027.

These changes are set to have an impact on many umbrella companies and be felt across the whole recruitment industry, so we want to help you navigate this period of change.

Watch the Recording

As well as providing you with a link to watch the full recording to get you up to speed on discussion points such as:

• A clear overview of the tax legislation changes, including joint and several liability due in April 2026
• The impact of the Employment Rights Bill due in April 2027
• How this new legislation impacts you and how you can prepare for the change
• How you can protect yourself from liability and carry out appropriate due diligence, including insight into PaySteam’s own 6-Point Compliance Plan
• Exactly what we at Sanderson are doing to ensure compliance across the supply chain and to keep a smooth process for our clients and contractors

This blog will also provide an overview of key questions asked and answered in the informative Q&A session during the webinar. Scroll down to explore…

Umbrella Reforms FAQs

Could a client still be liable if they have not done due diligence on an agency?

Where there is a UK agency in the supply chain between the client and umbrella company, the agency and umbrella company are the ones liable if there is a tax liability. The client would not be jointly and severally liable in that scenario.

If an agency cannot pay a tax bill, does liability flow back up the contractual chain?

The legislation does not currently suggest that liability could flow up the chain if neither the umbrella or agency could pay the bill. However, we’re still waiting on official guidance and the legislation is only in draft format, it may of course change before it receives Royal Assent.

Could consulting companies who are acting like an MSP for a client be held liable under the Umbrella Reform legislation?

Yes, we believe that MSPs will be on the hook should any tax liability accrue in relation to a non-compliant umbrella company in the supply chain. “Umbrella company arrangements” are broadly defined in the draft legislation such as to include these types of contractual arrangements with the end client.

What steps are the FCSA are taking in regards to the Umbrella Reform legislation? And, if they find a member to be non-compliant could they reject their membership and be transparent to agencies?

The FCSA themselves will be best placed to answer this question in the most detail, but yes we do understand the FCSA to have robust policies in place to investigate members for alleged non-compliance with its compliance codes, and that can ultimately lead to suspension and even expulsion for serious breaches.

Do you see clients (or MSPs) simply banning the use of umbrella companies as a result of this legislation?

The Employment Rights Bill is adding more complexity and litigation risk to employers, causing a headache for many businesses. Where an end client engages with an agency that has a connected or in-house umbrella company, we perceive clients moving towards independent umbrella companies to ensure the joint and several risk falls on the umbrella company and the agency. We also perceive clients reducing and dictating the umbrella PSL to ensure only financially robust, compliant and trusted partners are engaged in the supply chain

Could all of this extra administration lead to higher umbrella fees?

Yes, we foresee that umbrella margins will be under more pressure. There will be additional cost for the umbrella in evidencing its compliance, such as third-party payslip checking software. However, it may hopefully level the playing field and increase volumes as non-compliant operators exit the market.

Why would agencies be liable before umbrella companies? What would this look like in practice, if, for example, a simple mistake is made by an umbrella company?

HMRC will consider what “relevant parties” there are in the supply chain. The umbrella and the agency that holds the contract with the client will be jointly and severally liable. If there is no agency, liability will sit with the umbrella and client. In a recent policy paper, HMRC said joint and several liability will allow them to pursue an agency in the first instances for any payroll taxes that a non-compliant umbrella company fails to remit to HMRC. If a compliant umbrella company has made an innocent error in their payroll taxes, it does seem more likely that HMRC will go directly to the umbrella company to resolve the issue. Official guidance may clarify this for us in the coming months.

Next Steps

Do you have any more questions in regards to the Umbrella Reform changes due to come into effect in a few months? Don’t hesitate to reach out to Will Boney to find out more.

November 2025 marked another busy period in the UK Financial Services industry. We saw a market open with renewed activity across the insurance and banking landscape which reflected that the sector is adjusting to rising regulatory pressure, evolving risk profiles and rapid advances in the ever-present world of AI.

This period also saw a sharp rise in Actuarial hiring across the industry with the profession appearing to shift rather than diminish. But will the growth of machine learning signal the emergence of higher-value and more strategic roles within this function?

At Sanderson we always have our finger on the pulse of the latest changes in the market so that we can help you better understand how new trends might impact your hiring plans and then support you to turn these into opportunities when it comes to your financial services recruitment.

So, with that in mind, we’re pleased to have produced this new Report with VacancySoft that sums up the latest trends we’ve been seeing in the UK Financial Services market during November.

Have a sneak peek at some of the highlights below and scroll down to grab your copy!

London Market Trend Highlights

• Credit risk recruitment is accelerating rapidly with volumes on track to rise by 117% year on year.
• Vacancies in the London insurance sector rose by 15.1% month on month by mid-November supported by stronger underwriting conditions.
• IT management is a standout growth area with hiring volumes on track to rise by about 20% year on year.

Scotland Market Trend Highlights

• There are mounting cybersecurity pressures as financial institutions increase their reliance on cloud platforms, hybrid IT frameworks and digital services.
• Cybersecurity professionals are remaining in high demand and competition for this talent is continuing to push compensation upwards across the Scottish market.
• Regulatory frameworks such as GDPR and NIS2 are reinforcing the requirements across firms in the industry for stronger incident reporting and security governance.

North West Market Trend Highlights

• There was sustained growth across the financial services sector in the North, particularly in fintech and insurance.
• Fintech remains the regions standout success story with vacancies here on track to be 55% higher than last year.
• The insurance sector in the North continues to strengthen with vacancies rising by 7% month on month.

If you would like a more detailed overview of these trends, including the latest market data, monthly vacancy totals and insight into the top job roles by sector, then please do download a copy of the full Report via the form below.

Have any further questions? Don’t hesitate to get in touch with us, we’re well placed to help.

October 2025 marked a decisive period for hiring across the UK financial services sector, with regional and functional trends revealing how digital transformation, regulation, and geopolitics continue to reshape workforce priorities.

From London’s insurers to Scotland’s fintech ecosystem and the North West’s risk and compliance hubs, recruitment momentum is shifting towards technical, data-driven and regulatory disciplines that underpin the sector’s long-term stability.

Then looking ahead, will the interplay between regulation, AI adoption and geopolitical risk continue to drive recruitment patterns into 2026?

Well here at Sanderson, we always have our finger on the pulse of the latest changes in the market so that we can help you better understand how new trends might impact your hiring plans and then support you to turn these into opportunities when it comes to your financial services recruitment.

So, with that in mind, we’re pleased to have produced this new Report with VacancySoft that sums up the latest trends we’ve been seeing in the UK Financial Services market during October.

Have a sneak peek at some of the highlights below and scroll down to grab your copy!

London Market Trend Highlights

• IT vacancies have risen 11% year on year reflecting renewed investment in digital transformation.
• Insurers are prioritising digital resilience, automation and data-centric decision making rather than cyclical hiring.
• IT management roles encompassing change, projects and transformation have overtaken traditional broking vacancies for the first time with IT security vacancies projected to be 20.9% higher than 2024.

North West Market Trend Highlights

• Hiring has gathered significant pace banking.
• Demand for credit risk specialists is spiking with vacancies here now 42% above 2024 levels.
• Operational roles have risen by 21% during the first 9 months of 2025 with financial crime vacancies already exceeding last years total.

Scotland Market Trend Highlights

• Fintech hiring has accelerated dramatically with vacancies already 84.8% higher than 2024.
• Banking is accounting for around 75-80% of Scotland’s total financial services vacancies.
• Total fintech vacancies in Scotland are up 50% year on year, with the country’s share of UK fintech hiring rising from 2.7% in 2023 to 4.4% in 2025.

If you would like a more detailed overview of these trends, including the latest market data, monthly vacancy totals and insight into the top job roles by sector, then please do download a copy of the full Report via the form below.

Have any further questions? Don’t hesitate to get in touch with us, we’re well placed to help.

In case you missed it, we recently launched a new Spotlight Report focusing in on the world of Actuaries.

With Actuary talent in the financial services industry experiencing steady growth over the last 12 months (a 3% rise compared to the previous year according to data from LinkedIn), this is clearly a job role that is only going to remain in high demand.

But will Actuary career paths start feeling the effects of factors like artificial intelligence (AI), or even the rapid expansion of the UK Bulk Purchase Annuity (BPA) market?

In this short blog we’ll get stuck into what a typical Actuary career path looks like and discuss the potential impacts of AI and BPA on this role.

Let’s get stuck in!

What does a typical career path look like for an Actuary?

When it comes to career paths, these can vary between sectors. Most Actuaries start their careers straight out of university, and normally have a strong background in maths, statistics or finance. In their first graduate jobs they’ll be spending time getting stuck in with training and undertaking the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries (IFoA) exams, before moving into more independent analyst type positions.

With Actuaries, career progression is very much tied to the completion of the IFoA exams, which can take up to 8 years to fully pass all the stages. Once fully qualified, many Actuaries tend to follow a more specialist track and move into areas within the financial services industry like pensions, general insurance, investments or risk management.

Does the rise of BPA shape what Actuaries specialise in?

The UK BPA (Bulk Purchase Annuity) Market is currently going through a rapid expansion, alongside regulatory developments like the Solvency UK reforms. And this is impacting Actuarial recruitment across key sectors like the life insurance sector and may even be shaping what an Actuarial candidate decides to specialise in as they travel along their career paths.

For example, our data is showing that demand is the strongest for an Actuary candidate (qualified or mid-career) that has BPA experience in areas like pricing, transaction support, longevity risk modelling and capital optimisation with employers increasingly seeking candidates who can combine traditional technical skills with data science and digital capability.

So, with this evolution of demand, we might expect Actuary candidates to seek out specific experience on their road to qualification to ensure they stand out from the crowd with their ability to support BPA transactions.

What impact will AI have on an Actuary career path?

Our Horsefly Analytics research is suggesting that on an ‘AI Impact Scale’, Actuarial roles have a score of 49, meaning this is a role that’s set to be “moderately” affected by AI.

While the rise of artificial intelligence brings with it opportunities to move some tasks over to automation, it is certainly not set to replace the traditional Actuary.

Instead, it’s set to transform the profession and prompt the need for Actuaries on their road to qualification to upskill themselves in data science and AI technologies, which they may not previously have considered.

Looking to find out more?

If you’re interested in finding out more about the Actuary market, and want to dive a little deeper into these career path trends and how they may align to your talent strategies, then why not check out our full Report which is chockers full of market-leading salary data and industry trends. Just fill out the short form below.

If you have any further questions on this topic or are looking for a bit of help in expanding your team then please do get in touch with George Mohan on [email protected]

We’re pleased to present Sanderson’s brand-new Hiring Trends Report focusing on Digital, Technology, Change and Transformation hiring in the Financial Services sector in H1 2025.

This much anticipated report provides an overview of how hiring during the first half of 2025 compared to the previous year, how demand was distributed across the UK, and which roles were most sought after across banking, insurance, life & pensions, and investment management.

The first half of 2025 has seen many businesses proceed with caution in their permanent and contract hiring thanks to persistent inflation, concerns over US tariffs, ongoing geopolitical instability and the impact of National Insurance Contributions changing.

However despite this climate, strategic priorities across the financial services sector are sustaining demand for high-quality digital, technology, change, and transformation professionals. We’re also seeing businesses increase their investment in digital and artificial intelligence platforms to modernise legacy infrastructure, meet evolving regulatory requirements and enhance their customer experience.

As we approach the latter half of the year, now may be the time to reassess your hiring strategies, enhance your understanding of emerging technologies and then address your skills gaps with the right blend of permanent or contractor talent.

This report, using data from VacancySoft and LinkedIn and reviewed by Sanderson’s market-leading experts, reflects on how these trends have shaped hiring throughout the Financial Services sector in H1 2025, as well as providing predictions on how it may evolve throughout the remainder of the year.

The last few months have been anything but quiet for the Financial Services market in London. From vacancies on the rise, investment in AI accelerating and actuarial booming, it can seem hard to keep track of the latest market activity.

But at Sanderson, we always have our finger on the pulse of the latest changes in the market so that we can help you better understand how any changes might impact your hiring plans and then support you to turn these market trends into opportunities when it comes to your recruitment.

So, with that in mind, we’ve teamed up with VacancySoft to sum up the latest trends we’ve been seeing in the London Financial Services market over the last few months in a handy Report.

Take a look at the sneak peek below and scroll down to grab your copy!

Vacancies

The finance sector in London is showing signs of life with vacancies rising by 17% since January, marking the busiest period since early 2023.

Insurance and Fintech

Insurance vacancies are easing with broking down so far in 2025. But will underwriting activity surpass last year’s volumes?

Artificial Intelligence

We’re seeing Allianz and lots of other insurance firms across the sector accelerating their investment into AI and transformation and working hard to automate their processes. And the impact this increased use of AI appears to be having on recruitment is that whilst there’s been a slowdown in hiring in many departments this year in the Insurance industry, IT vacancies are continuing to rise, with activity on track to be 15% higher than 2024 in London, and this is a trend we expect to continue.

Actuarial

London has recorded its fourth consecutive monthly increase in actuarial roles, so alongside our Report we sat down with Sanderson Senior Consultant and Actuarial specialist George Mohan for his views on what the state of play is looking like:

“Actuarial recruitment in life insurance has remained steady through 2025, underpinned by a busy market for bulk purchase annuities (BPA) and continuing regulatory developments. Solvency UK reforms have been shaping capital and risk management strategies, prompting insurers to strengthen their actuarial teams in areas such as reporting, balance sheet optimisation and capital modelling. Activity in BPA and reinsurance deals is also keeping demand stable for pricing and transaction specialists, while ongoing product innovation in retirement and protection markets supports a baseline level of hiring.

The profile of demand, however, is evolving. Employers are increasingly seeking actuaries who not only bring deep technical knowledge of life insurance liabilities and regulatory frameworks but can also apply data science, machine learning and advanced analytics. Skills in longevity risk modelling, asset-liability management and capital optimisation are in high demand, especially where firms are competing to execute on BPA opportunities at scale. Time-to-hire has lengthened for hybrid profiles, with firms prepared to pay salary premiums to secure candidates who can bridge traditional actuarial expertise with digital capability.

Flexibility remains another defining feature of the market. Hybrid and remote working are now standard expectations, particularly in technical and project-based roles. While graduate and trainee recruitment remains selective, fully qualified actuaries with strong transaction, modelling and regulatory skills are well positioned.

The overall picture is one of stability with sharper edges. Life insurers are maintaining headcount and investing in areas tied to Solvency UK, BPA transactions and longevity risk, while shifting their focus towards talent that can combine actuarial rigour with technology and data. The message is clear the market is steady, but the profile of demand is changing and those who adapt fastest will capture the best opportunities.”

Fintech

Fintech vacancies in London reached their highest monthly total in more than two years in July – will this trigger a war on talent?

Fixed term contracts

Have volatile markets and uncertainty over the upcoming employment bill meant that many employers are reluctant to expand their permanent headcount causing an incline in the number of FTCs in the market?

All in all, with banking vacancies rising, fintech attracting record funding, and insurers pivoting towards automation, a unifying trend has become clear.

Talent, particularly in technology and data, has become the currency of competition, dictating which firms will lead in the next phase of growth.

If you’re working in the Financial Services industry, then it will have been hard to ignore the latest changes set to take shape across the UK pensions market.

And the changes are big. The entire UK pension landscape is now on the cusp of a transformation that will have far-reaching implications, not just for savers, but for the entire financial services sector.

In this blog we’ll lay out exactly what the proposed changes are and what they might mean for talent and hiring across the financial services sector.

Let’s go.

What is the UK Pension Reform?

Well, the 2025 Pension Investment Review and the Mansion House Accord have recently set ambitious targets designed to turbocharge investment in the UK economy and reshape how retirement savings are managed. This is set to have implications across many businesses and how they run and manage their employee pension pots.

What impact will the Pension Reform have?

Under the current system, by 2030 all multi-employer defined contribution schemes and Local Government Pension Scheme pools are expected to hit £25 billion in assets under management, which will create what’s known in the industry as “megafunds.”

However, the new Mansion House Accord (which has been signed by 17 of the UK’s largest pension providers), will commit these providers to invest 10% of default fund assets into private markets, with 5% earmarked for UK-based opportunities.

Collectively, this could unlock up to £50 billion for infrastructure, private equity, venture capital, and other “productive finance” in the UK by the end of the decade.

This change represents a fundamental shift in how UK pensions are managed, how capital flows through the UK economy and what skills the sector will need.

What changes might the UK see after the Pension Reform comes into effect?

Today, only a handful of UK pension providers manage default funds above the £25bn threshold. But by 2030, that number is set to double. We’ll see smaller schemes merge or wind down, and the defined contribution market will consolidate into a small number of heavyweight “megafunds” instead.

At the same time, pension portfolios are set to pivot.

Currently, only about 2% of defined contribution pension assets are invested in private markets and that figure is expected to quintuple to 10% by 2030 which is a dramatic shift into asset classes such as unlisted companies, infrastructure projects, and renewable energy.

Will the Reform cause demand for specific job roles and skills?

So, what exactly does this Pension Reform mean for talent and hiring?

Well, according to our data we’re predicting an increased demand for the following skills:

Change and Transformation

The drive to merge dozens of smaller schemes into megafunds will create a demand for specialist skills to manage this transformation. Providers will need Project Managers, Business Analysts, Actuaries, and Integration specialists who can navigate bulk transfers, align systems, and manage cultural integration across merged schemes.

Investments

Megafunds will need to manage increasingly complex portfolios. This will drive a surge in demand for Investment Managers to source, evaluate, and structure deals in private equity, venture capital, infrastructure, and private debt and Project Finance Specialists to analyse and fund major UK projects in transport, energy, and housing.

Governance, Risk & Compliance

Higher allocations to different asset classes will bring increased scrutiny. Pension funds will bolster their risk management and compliance functions, seeking professionals who can manage stress testing, oversee charge-cap compliance, and ensure investments stay aligned with fiduciary duties.

What challenges might there be for hiring?

While an increasing demand for certain skill sets might be a good thing for the market, these changes and surges do present additional challenges.

Mainly that these skills are already in high demand. Private markets analysts, actuaries, infrastructure finance specialists, and risk experts are among the most sought-after profiles in the financial services workforce today.

For HR and Talent teams, this comes at a time when they are already juggling business-as-usual hiring, driving internal mobility programmes, and spearheading reskilling initiatives to futureproof their organisations. Layer on top the ongoing need to assess how AI will reshape roles and processes, and it’s clear that talent strategies will need to be sharper, more creative, and more competitive than ever to secure the expertise required for this pensions-driven shift.

How we can help

At Sanderson, our team are well versed in navigating the often-murky waters of the UK financial services hiring market. Not only do we have access to some of the best talent pools in the UK to get you the skills you need and fast, but we understand the complexities of future-proofing your hiring strategies while trying to manage day-to-day talent management tasks.

If you’re looking for support, or would just like to chat to us about what the Pension Reform might mean for you and your business, then reach out to us today and let’s chat about how we can help.

Is momentum finally starting to build across the Change & Transformation market?

You might have seen that we recently launched our latest Change & Transformation Insights Report where we dipped into data suggesting that 2025 is showing signs of increased activity as more and more businesses are re-engaging with their transformation agendas thanks to budget approvals and team mobilisations.

In this blog we’ll explore the noticeable uptick in M&A activity within financial services and lay out the key insights you need to know on what this means for hiring in the Change & Transformation sector.

What does the M&A market currently look like?

Looking at our data as well as sources such as KPMG’s 2025 M&A Outlook, 2024 was somewhat of a turnaround year for M&A markets. By the back end of 2024 the value of domestic M&A reached a whopping £8.6 billion and thanks to this we are seeing a huge surge in M&A activity this year.

For example, in the financial services space we’ve seen the likes of Nationwide acquire Virgin Money, Coventry Building Society acquire Co-Op Bank, Barclays acquire Tesco Bank to name just a few. And it’s looking like this growth in activity is set to continue through the rest of 2025.

What is driving this high rate of M&A activity in the financial services sector?

It largely comes down to economies of scale. Smaller financial services firms are finding it increasingly difficult to keep up with regulatory requirements, the increased need for digitalisation and wider competitive pressures.

M&A offers them the opportunity to become part of something larger and more resilient. We’re seeing strong evidence of the industry gravitating towards consolidation and a “safety in numbers” mentality as they prioritise stability over disruption.

What does all this M&A activity mean from a hiring perspective?

Well, when an M&A is initiated at a business, we usually then tend to see a significant spike in contract hiring at the beginning of this process.

Permanent roles are still important, but in our experience, we often see companies feel hesitant in committing to permanent positions while they navigate the start of such a fluid situation. Instead, hiring activity is initially focused on contractual positions and often there’s a preference for candidates who have a familiarity with “Part VII” of the Financial Services and Markets Act i.e. the legal framework for transferring assets and liabilities from one company to another. Businesses find themselves needing contractors who can fill positions like Business Analysts, Project Managers and HR professionals who can help guide them through the integration process.

With an initial focus on internal systems, as this stabilises resourcing then starts to look to permanent hires or consultancy services as they put their energy into filling customer facing roles.

What skills and attributes do employers look for when hiring for large transformation programmes like M&A?

In our experience, the skills employers look to hire for during a transformation project vary depending on the specific phase of the transformation project they’re at.

For example, if a business comes to us with a hard deadline such as getting their acquired company onto their payroll system, then delivery-focused candidates are a must.

But on the other hand, if their focus is on people and organisational change then soft skills like empathy, communication and stakeholder management become crucial.

What is the Top 5 industries for M&A talent right now?

According to data, we’re seeing a lot of activity in sectors like:

• Asset Management
• Banking
• Payments
• Fintech
• Insurance

How can you attract M&A talent to your organisation?

Looking at our data sources, while things like excellent compensation and benefits packages are still important, candidates are also favouring added benefits like flexible work arrangements, the opportunity to get stuck into impactful work and even things like collaboration in the company culture.

Are you looking to find out more?

If this blog has whetted your appetite to find out even more about the Change & Transformation market, then why not take a look at the full Report? Chockers full of industry-leading data (including salary benchmarking stats), it’s like having our expertise in your back pocket to set you up for hiring success.

And if you have any questions or would like to dig a little deeper into anything discussed in this blog, feel free to reach out to me on [email protected]

We recently launched our much-anticipated Financial Services Hiring Trends Report which focuses on Digital, Technology, Change and Transformation hiring in the Financial Services sector. The Report delves into how hiring in 2024 compared to the previous year, how hiring demand was split across the UK and what the most in demand roles were across the financial services sector.

But what did the data show us about trends in London?

Permanent finance vacancies

According to data from VacancySoft and reviewed by our expert recruiters, the hiring demand for permanent vacancies covering digital, technology, change and transformation in the UK financial services sector has remained highest across Greater London and the South-East of England.

In 2023 there were 2194 vacancies in Greater London, and then an equally high 2099 in 2024. Looking at the South-East region, there were 782 vacancies in 2023 followed by 769 in 2024.

These vacancies are miles ahead in numbers compared to the rest of the UK. For example, the North-West only saw 359 and 296 vacancies in 2023 and 2024 respectively, and the West Midlands only had 291 and 256. This confirms that London and surrounding areas are a real hub of talent and that there continues to be a real demand for talent in the financial services sector.

Hiring trends in London

London is one of Sanderson’s largest markets in the financial services sector, with our expertise spanning across General Insurance, London Market Insurance, Life & Pensions, Investment Management, Banking and Building Societies.

When you look at the hiring trends in this region across the world of Finance, it’s clear that London continues to lead the way in UK in digital, technology, change and transformation hiring in the financial services sector. Hiring demand in London has also been more resilient to the impact of external factors like political uncertainty and economic challenges. This is demonstrated by vacancies across the UK declining by 8.5%, whereas they only declined by 4.4% in London – a clear indicator that the market in London remained strong. Also, the trend we saw back in 2023 of a shift away from London towards regional hubs such as Manchester has slowed.

What will the future look like?

It’s clear that London is at the centre of hiring demand in the financial services sector. But what else should we be aware of in this region and sector?

One thing we’ll be keeping a close eye on is the return to the office, particularly in Financial Services firms in London. We’re already seeing more consistent patterns of 3 days per week in the office and a some of our clients returning to as many as 4 days in London across all roles regardless of whether they’re in digital, technology or transformation.

This is a marked swing back towards the majority of the week being spent in the office, and while hybrid working is here to stay, it does mean less choice for job seekers requiring more remote roles.

I’d therefore expect that we start to see less movement in this sector based purely on what hybrid working schedules companies are offering and instead see trends returning to a more level playing field with other factors in the job offering holding more weight as we progress through 2025/2026.

Next steps

Are you ready to find out more?

As we leave Q1 behind, now is the time to start thinking about enhancing operational efficiencies, addressing your skills gaps and supporting the reskilling of your existing workforce with the right blend of permanent employees, contractors and consultancies.

Arm yourself with data produced by Sanderson’s market-leading experts by downloading a copy of our Financial Services Hiring Trends Annual Report by filling out the short form below.

Have any further questions or considering how your London based business can get ahead of these hiring trends? Don’t hesitate to get in touch with Joss Collins on [email protected]