The brief is getting more senior. In the financial services sector, recruitment was generally for Regulatory Qualification Framework (RQF) 6+ roles, rather than RQF 3-5 GOV.UK - Temporary Shortage List: Stage 2 report. In plain terms, RQF 6 sits at degree level, so firms are looking for people with deeper qualifications and more experience, not entry-level support.
That matters for asset-based lending, where deals turn on judgement. When you lend against invoices, stock, plant or property, someone has to value the collateral, read the risk and keep the client relationship steady through drawdowns and repayments. Those are not junior tasks, which is why the hiring brief keeps moving up the qualification ladder GOV.UK - Temporary Shortage List: Stage 2 report.
Asset-based lending needs a wider mix of skills than a single loan product. Think risk and credit analysts who can model exposure, relationship managers who understand a borrower's working capital, collateral and audit specialists who verify what's being lent against, and compliance people who keep everything inside the rules. Each of these sits in that RQF 6+ band the data points to GOV.UK - Temporary Shortage List: Stage 2 report.
The dynamic is clear: as the product broadens, so does the team around it. You're not replacing one lending role, you're building a chain of people who assess, approve, monitor and support. That raises the bar on who you hire and how quickly you can find them, because the qualified talent pool at this level is tighter GOV.UK - Temporary Shortage List: Stage 2 report.
Start with the real brief, not a generic job title. Write down the qualifications that genuinely matter, the regulatory knowledge the role needs, and the one or two skills you cannot compromise on. With demand skewed to RQF 6+ roles, being precise early saves you time later GOV.UK - Temporary Shortage List: Stage 2 report.
Then move quickly and fairly. Qualified finance people have options, so a slow process loses them. Shortlist on evidence, keep interviews focused on how someone handles risk and clients, and give clear feedback at every stage. Speed and structure are not opposites here: a tight process is what lets you reach the right person before someone else does.
We search a database of 15 million candidates to find the senior, qualified finance people this brief now demands, and we rank them against what you actually need. Our recruitment agent manages recruitment end to end for 8% on a successful hire, with no monthly fee and no upfront cost. If you're building an asset-based lending team, tell us the brief and we'll get started today with Reed.ai.
