The scope of risk management roles in banking is changing as businesses adapt to new regulatory requirements, rapid digital transformation, and a rising number of cyber threats. Banks are investing in strengthening their risk teams to ensure resilience against immediate financial shocks and long-term challenges.
For professionals, this means opportunities for those who combine regulatory expertise with technical skills in threat assessment, controls testing, and data analysis. For financial institutions, it’s about building teams that can protect operations today while preparing for the risks of tomorrow.
Here’s a closer look at the trends shaping hiring in risk management:
1. Strengthening cyber resilience
With global cybercrime expected to cost $10.5 trillion annually by 2025, up from $3 trillion in 2015, financial institutions are making cyber resilience a top hiring priority.
IT Risk and Cyber Security Managers play a crucial role in safeguarding digital systems, ensuring regulatory compliance, and leading incident responses. They design robust security frameworks, conduct threat assessments, and oversee incident resolution.
Additionally, employers increasingly look for:
- Expertise with SIEM tools such as Splunk and IBM QRadar
- Proficiency in vulnerability management platforms like Tenable
- Experience with advanced threat intelligence solutions
- Strong knowledge of security protocols
- Solid understanding of risk mitigation methods
2. Increased oversight of third-party partnerships
Banks are increasingly engaging third-party vendors for critical services, which makes effective management of external partnerships essential. Outsourcing Risk Managers play a key role in overseeing these relationships, ensuring compliance with regulatory and operational standards while reducing potential vulnerabilities.
This requires a deep understanding of the financial sector, strong skills in assessing contract exposure, and expertise in vendor relationship management, making it one of the most sought-after risk management roles in banking.
3. Focus on operational continuity
Recent high-profile incidents and stricter regulatory requirements have heightened the focus on operational resilience. Even minor process gaps, system breakdowns, or human errors can disrupt services and damage trust. Operational Risk Analysts help identify vulnerabilities early, evaluate their potential impact, and implement safeguards to prevent costly failures.
Employers seek analytical professionals with:
- Strong analytical skills
- Solid grasp of industry and regulatory frameworks such as ISO 31000
- Ability to design mitigation strategies that are effective in real-world banking environments
4. Navigating complex regulatory landscapes
A recent KPMG survey points out that 73% of participants predict a rise in compliance focus in the US, particularly around meeting heightened regulatory expectations. This complex regulatory environment in banking, firms are expecting the senior compliance staff cost to rise globally.
Compliance Officers, particularly those specialising in anti-money laundering (AML) and know your customer (KYC), are highly sought-after professionals.
They often work with high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth clients, including politically exposed individuals, requiring a thorough understanding of global standards such as FINMA and FATCA. Attention to detail, clear communication skills, and audit support experience are all highly valued.
5. Adopting automation and AI in risk monitoring
Automation and AI are increasingly used in risk functions across the sector to handle growing data volumes and the complexity of modern risk management. AI-powered tools are increasingly used in detecting patterns, flagging anomalies, and predicting emerging risks faster than manual methods, while automations are built to reduce routine workloads and errors.
Markets Automation Specialists using platforms like UiPath and Automation Anywhere, programming languages such as Python and SQL, and tools including Bloomberg Terminal and Murex, are in high demand. They are instrumental in enabling risk teams to focus on high-value strategic decisions.
Looking to strengthen your bank’s risk management teams? We work with risk management talent with our teams across Europe, APAC, and the US today.
