Financial services is a sector built on qualifications and regulation, and that shapes who firms hire. Government analysis found that in the financial services sector, recruitment was generally for Regulatory Qualification Framework (RQF) 6+ roles, rather than RQF 3 to 5 GOV.UK - Temporary Shortage List: Stage 2 report. In plain terms, firms are chasing higher-level, degree-equivalent skills, not entry-level ones.
That demand for advanced skills is colliding with a national push to build them. During London Tech Week 2025, the UK government announced a partnership to upskill 7.5 million UK workers in essential AI skills by 2030, equivalent to around 20% of the UK workforce techUK. For finance employers, that signals where talent and tooling are both heading: towards people who can work alongside AI.
The way firms bring people in is shifting too. Apprenticeships have risen from 3% of AI hires in 2020 to 19% in 2025 GOV.UK / DSIT – AI Labour Market Survey 2025 report. That tells us employers are increasingly willing to grow talent in-house rather than only buy it ready-made, and that AI-related roles are becoming a normal part of the hiring mix.
For regulated finance roles, this creates a clear tension. You need people with RQF 6+ depth, and you want them productive quickly, but complex compliance, systems and products take time to learn. The question becomes how to shorten that ramp without cutting corners on the rules.
Start with the real skills the role needs, not a wish list. For RQF 6+ positions, be precise about the qualifications, regulatory knowledge and judgement you require, then test for them. A sharp, honest brief attracts the right people and filters out the rest before you spend time interviewing.
Move quickly once you find a strong match. Good finance talent does not stay on the market long, so a slow process loses people. Keep your stages tight, give feedback fast and make the decision when the evidence is there.
Then plan the first few months before someone starts. Pair every new hire with the support they need from day one: a clear onboarding path, a named human mentor and an AI agent that can answer process and policy questions on demand. An agent gives instant, consistent answers while your senior people stay focused on the judgement calls that need a human. That combination helps a new hire reach competent, compliant work faster.
We built our AI recruitment agent to find the right regulated-finance talent and manage the whole process for you. We search a database of 15 million candidates, rank a shortlist in seconds and handle the steps through to a booked interview, so you can focus on settling your new hire in.
Our recruitment agent manages recruitment end to end for 8% on a successful hire, with no monthly fee and no upfront cost. That price reflects the value of finding the right person and running your recruitment end to end. Tell Reed.ai about your next finance role today and we will get started.
