Meningkatnya IPO picu perekrutan karyawan bank di Hong Kong

Tenaga kerja di 15 lender turun 0,73% menjadi 74.376 orang pada 2025.

Industri perbankan Hong Kong tengah mengalami kebangkitan perekrutan tahun ini, didorong oleh pemulihan pasar modal dan proyek-proyek otomasi, setelah total jumlah tenaga kerja di kalangan lender-lender besar sedikit menurun pada 2025, menurut para eksekutif rekrutmen.

Tenaga kerja di 15 bank besar di Hong Kong turun 0,73% secara tahunan menjadi 74.376 karyawan pada akhir 2025, menurut data yang dihimpun oleh Asian Banking & Finance.

Para perekrut mengatakan angka headline yang datar tersebut menutupi adanya pergeseran dalam permintaan perekrutan menuju eksekusi kesepakatan (deal execution), trading, kepatuhan, dan peran-peran teknologi, seiring meningkatnya penawaran umum perdana (IPO) dan lembaga-lembaga keuangan yang memperluas program otomasi mereka.

“Perbankan tengah bangkit kembali,” ujar Eric Zhu, director of financial services untuk Greater China di Morgan McKinley Ltd., kepada Asian Banking & Finance.

Ia mengatakan aktivitas pasar membaik antara kuartal terakhir 2025 hingga awal 2026, seiring semakin banyak perusahaan yang mempersiapkan pencatatan (listing) di Bursa Efek Hong Kong, sehingga mendongkrak permintaan akan profesional kesepakatan (deal professionals), insinyur, dan spesialis trading. Ia menambahkan bahwa meningkatnya volume transaksi telah memperkuat permintaan untuk peran-peran eksekusi dan operasional pasca-perdagangan (post-trade).

Fiona Mak, senior managing director di Ambition Group Hong Kong Ltd. & AmbTech, mengatakan tim-tim pemantauan sanksi, pencegahan kejahatan keuangan, dan analisis risiko tengah berkembang secara diam-diam di berbagai lembaga, seiring bank-bank merespons pergeseran kondisi pasar global yang semakin cepat serta meningkatnya risiko eksposur lintas batas.

Ia mengatakan perekrutan di sektor private banking, manajemen kekayaan, dan family office juga tengah menguat, dengan sejumlah profesional ekspatriat yang kembali ke Hong Kong dari pusat-pusat keuangan lainnya.

Ia mencatat bahwa ketegangan geopolitik telah mendukung arus masuk ke kota tersebut, meskipun masih terlalu dini untuk memastikan apakah tren ini dapat bertahan.

Mak mengatakan perekrutan untuk fungsi middle dan back-office menjadi semakin selektif, seiring bank-bank memperketat kendali biaya. Ia mengatakan lembaga-lembaga keuangan kini semakin mengandalkan staf kontrak dan model perekrutan yang fleksibel, alih-alih memperluas jumlah karyawan tetap di fungsi-fungsi pendukung.

Pasar modal juga telah mendukung perekrutan di fungsi-fungsi front-office, khususnya perdagangan saham dan produk terstruktur, kata Toby Miles, associate director of technology di Ambition Hong Kong, dalam sebuah panggilan Microsoft Teams. Ia menambahkan bahwa keterampilan trading tetap sangat diminati, seiring meningkatnya turnover di berbagai kelas aset.

Kompleksitas regulasi di berbagai yurisdiksi juga turut berkontribusi terhadap permintaan akan profesional kepatuhan, kata Miles, seraya mencatat bahwa bank-bank tengah memperluas fungsi risiko dan asurans di tengah persyaratan pengawasan yang semakin ketat di seluruh sektor jasa keuangan.

“Ini bukan hanya soal merekrut para teknolog di bidang kecerdasan buatan (AI),” ujar Miles. “Bank-bank juga tengah mencari para profesional di bidang kebijakan AI, hukum, dan kepatuhan.”

Ini mencerminkan pergeseran yang lebih luas dalam prioritas perekrutan, di mana bank-bank kini mengintegrasikan fungsi tata kelola dan regulasi ke dalam strategi penerapan teknologi mereka, alih-alih memperlakukannya sebagai disiplin yang terpisah, ia menekankan.

Otomasi juga tengah membentuk ulang struktur perekrutan di seluruh industri. Miles mengatakan peran-peran junior semakin terpapar risiko digantikan oleh sistem AI, seiring bank-bank memprioritaskan posisi-posisi yang menghasilkan pendapatan serta menyederhanakan alur kerja operasional.

“Ada kemungkinan besar bahwa lebih banyak peran junior di bank-bank akan diambil alih oleh AI dalam beberapa tahun ke depan,” ujar Miles, seraya menambahkan bahwa perusahaan-perusahaan kini tengah merancang ulang alur kerja mereka untuk mengintegrasikan analisis berbantuan mesin dan dukungan pengambilan keputusan.

Zhu mengatakan bank-bank tengah bereksperimen dengan model-model di mana alat AI mereplikasi sebagian dari alur kerja analis dan trader, mengurangi ukuran tim pendukung sembari meningkatkan kompensasi bagi talenta senior yang produktivitasnya tinggi.

“Yang sedang dipikirkan oleh bank-bank saat ini adalah bagaimana menduplikasi pola pikir seorang analis yang sangat baik,” ujar Zhu. “Mereka mungkin memangkas jumlah pekerjaan namun menaikkan gaji untuk merekrut orang-orang yang memang layak.”

HSBC Holdings Plc is considering global job cuts of about 20,000 roles, according to Bloomberg News, citing people familiar with the matter. Most of the cuts are expected in middle and back-office functions as the bank expands AI deployment across operations.

HSBC employs about 26,000 staff in Hong Kong, including employees of Hang Seng Bank Ltd., based on industry estimates compiled from public disclosures and sector data.

Bank of China (Hong Kong) Ltd. remained the second-biggest employer in the city’s banking sector with 12,333 employees at end-2025, up 1.25% year on.year.

DBS Bank (Hong Kong) Ltd. employed 4,819 staff in the city at end-2025, whilst CMB Wing Lung Bank posted one of the strongest workforce increases among surveyed lenders over the same period.

DBS Bank (HK) Ltd. also announced plans this year to expand wealth management capacity across Asia, including wealth centres in selected markets, as part of a broader push to capture fee-based income growth in the region.

Recruitment executives said banks are increasingly prioritising franchise-based revenue models, including asset management and advisory services, where institutions earn fees rather than deploying balance-sheet capital in risk-intensive activities.

Zhu said uncertainty driven by geopolitical risks, including trade policy shifts and global tensions, has accelerated the shift toward advisory and fee-generating businesses.

He said banks are reducing exposure to proprietary trading and limiting underwriting activities where capital is at risk, whilst increasing focus on wealth management and structured advisory services.

‘Work from anywhere’
International hiring models are also evolving. Zhu said banks are increasingly getting senior talent from other financial hubs without requiring relocation to Hong Kong, reflecting a shift toward distributed workforce structures.

Miles described this as a “work from anywhere” model, noting that hybrid arrangements remain common even as office attendance rises across the sector.

Mak said workplace benefits are becoming a differentiating factor in talent competition, with banks and hedge funds offering structured meals, wellness programmes, and in-house catering to attract and retain staff.

She said some firms provide dedicated kitchens and chefs, which candidates increasingly view as a signal of workplace investment and culture quality in competitive hiring markets.

Miles said flexible work arrangements remain widespread across financial institutions, although firms are gradually increasing in-office requirements for client-facing and trading roles.

He added that language skills are becoming more important as mainland capital flows into Hong Kong increase, with Mandarin now carrying more weight alongside English and Cantonese in hiring decisions.

Mak said training support, subsidised courses, and upskilling programmes are becoming more important for job seekers, especially younger professionals entering the industry.

Recruiters said banks are competing not only within financial services but across sectors for talent, with technology firms, hedge funds, and digital platforms drawing from the same candidate pool.

Zhu said banks are no longer seen as the top employer for younger candidates, pushing institutions to improve pay and career development paths.

He added that firms are willing to pay more for top performers whilst cutting headcount in less productive roles.

Recruiters said this trend is expected to continue as AI use rises and banking operations shift to more efficient, automated, and revenue-focused models.