Compliance, risk and private markets roles top banking hiring demand for 2026: Morgan McKinley

[SINGAPORE] Banking hiring is set to “stay active but cautious” in 2026, with competition strongest for specialists in financial crime, regulatory reporting, risk and private markets functions.

The increased demand is due to regulatory scrutiny and private-markets growth, as well as continued demand for financial crime, credit risks and digital-asset expertise, findings in this year’s Morgan McKinley Singapore Salary Guide showed. 

Across 2024-2025, banking and financial services firms were found to favour candidates with “strong network, sector-specific expertise and language capabilities” for front-office roles, with preference for “experienced professionals who can deliver immediate impact”.

Front-office positions which experienced the highest hiring demand included senior private bankers, capital markets bankers, digital asset professionals and quantitative traders.

Meanwhile, in-demand corporate infrastructure jobs in the sector included financial crime compliance, know-your-customer (KYC), anti-money laundering, Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) regulatory reporting specialist roles, as well as operational risk managers.

Banking and financial services firms have also increased their reliance on contract roles to manage cost pressure, meet regulatory obligations and support cyclical demand. Compliance roles, including KYC and regulatory reporting analysts, particularly dominated contracting demand.

For risk and compliance roles, organisations now expect professionals to bring data and technology depth, given expanding digital transformation and fintech activity. For such professionals, analytics, AI literacy, digital risk, and vendor-risk oversight are becoming “baseline skills rather than differentiators”, the report said.

Credit risk specialists, non-financial regulatory compliance specialists, and digital risk, third-party compliance specialists were particularly in demand, the report noted.

“Controlled but selective” salary growth

Across the sector, salary growth is expected to be “controlled but selective”.

SEE ALSO

In particular, niche or high-impact roles such as MAS regulatory reporting, digital assets, financial crime and fund finance can expect salary increases of 3 to 6 per cent for 2026.

Contractors working for banks may see similar or slightly reduced salaries, as banks continue to manage tight budgets. However, investment firms are offering 20 to 25 per cent salary uplifts to attract specialist contractors in governance, finance and operations.

Ken Ong, managing director of Morgan McKinley Singapore said: “As we look to 2026, success will hinge on how effectively organisations use talent as a strategic differentiator. That means prioritising skills over credentials, combining permanent and flexible workforce models, and investing meaningfully in upskilling. Singapore’s future competitiveness will depend not only on innovation, but on the people who drive it.”