The picture is one of selective demand rather than broad expansion. Recruitment across the wider labour market has stayed cautious, with hotspots for specialist skills rather than volume hiring, as set out in the 2026 tech recruitment outlook covered by Computer Weekly. Financial services sits inside that trend: employers are hiring for depth, not just numbers.
That selectivity is visible in the qualifications employers now ask for. In its review of shortage roles, the GOV.UK Temporary Shortage List Stage 2 report found that financial services recruitment was generally for Regulatory Qualification Framework (RQF) level 6 and above, rather than the level 3 to 5 band. Put simply, the roles that are hardest to fill sit at degree level or higher, and often carry a regulated qualification alongside them.
There is still momentum in adjacent professional work. The ONS Vacancies and jobs in the UK bulletin for November 2025 reported that the largest volume increase in vacancies over August to October 2025 was in professional, scientific and technical activities, up by 5,000. Finance functions draw on that same pool of qualified, technical talent.
Open finance widens the flow of data between banks, lenders and third parties, so the roles in demand blend regulated finance knowledge with strong technical skill. That combination is where hiring is getting harder.
On the technical side, analysis and systems design roles are stretched. GOV.UK's Occupations in demand 2025 data lists IT business analysts, architects and systems designers, around 193,000 workers, among the occupations in critical demand, with three of five indicators flagged critical. Open finance platforms lean heavily on exactly these people to design safe, compliant data flows.
AI skills are climbing fast too, and finance is not exempt. According to Accenture data reported by The Register, demand for AI skills rose nearly 200 per cent in a year, with London accounting for 80 per cent of AI-related job postings.
Entry-level routes tell the other half of the story. techUK reports Adzuna figures showing a 30 per cent drop in UK entry-level job postings since ChatGPT launched, with graduates facing the toughest market since 2018. So the demand is real, but it clusters around proven, higher-level skills rather than first jobs.
Start with the qualification the role genuinely needs. Because the hard-to-fill financial services roles sit at RQF level 6 and above per the GOV.UK Temporary Shortage List Stage 2 report, write your requirements around the specific regulated qualification and specialism, not a generic seniority label. It sharpens your shortlist and speeds up compliant hiring.
Second, treat specialist skills as the scarce resource they are. With demand concentrated in AI, data, enterprise applications and cyber security, as Computer Weekly's 2026 outlook notes, competing employers are chasing the same small groups. Move quickly and keep your process short.
Third, open up your routes in. Apprenticeships now make up nearly a fifth of AI hires in the DSIT AI Labour Market Survey 2025, so blending experienced hires with trained-up talent widens your reach when the qualified pool is tight.
When the qualified pool is small and the qualifications matter, you need to reach the right people fast. We search a database of 15 million candidates and return a ranked shortlist in under 30 seconds, so you can move on scarce, higher-level finance and technical talent before competitors do. Our recruitment agent manages recruitment end to end for 8% on a successful hire, with no monthly fee and no upfront cost, through Reed.ai. Tell us the qualification and specialism you need, and we'll surface the people who match.
