Fund managers pay up for niche investment analyst talent

As fund managers struggle to find specialist expertise in alternative asset classes, employers are needing to offer competitive salaries to recruit talent.

According to Kaizen Recruitment’s Investment Analyst Salary Guide 2024, investment analysts with two to five years of experience and specialised expertise in asset classes, such as private debt, infrastructure and private equity, are in high demand at the moment.

Money Management previously explored the difficulties of recruiting sufficiently experienced talents in areas such as private credit where hires are more likely to come from investment banks than from other rival managers.

It noted that roles requiring a strong niche and technical skill set – including alternative asset exposure, advanced financial modelling and business intelligence proficiency – are increasingly challenging to fill due to the limited pool of such professionals.

“Candidates with niche experience in asset classes including infrastructure, private debt, and private equity alongside strong quantitative capabilities remain in high demand. Proficiency in Excel, financial modelling, and exposure to business intelligence or coding tools are particularly valuable,” said Jeremy Easy, senior recruitment consultant at Kaizen.

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As a result, a typical analyst salary could rise from $100,000–140,000 up to $160,000 if the candidate could demonstrate their experience in alternative assets.

“These analysts, though still in the earlier stages of their careers, are expected to hit the ground running and bring immediate value to their organisations.”

Private market investments continue to gain momentum, with half of financial advisers and wealth managers in Asia-Pacific planning to increase their clients’ exposure to private equity and multiprivate asset solutions, according to Schroders.

However, these asset classes also present certain complexities in terms of the illiquid nature of the investment and their opaqueness, meaning investment analysts also need to have a more technical set of skills.

“Given these talent shortages, employers are expanding their strategies to attract top candidates, including offering increasingly competitive salaries, enhanced benefits, and other appealing incentives,” Easy said.

“Likewise, candidates are prioritising opportunities that offer strong career development, diversity initiatives, and work/life balance.”

The salary guide noted that boutique investment firms may offer higher salaries to attract talent, while larger institutions can provide more comprehensive benefits packages.

Kaizen provided the following average salary ranges in the investment analyst space:

Source: Kaizen ,October 2024

For the senior analysts, bonuses are typically 15–30 per cent but can reach as much as 40 per cent if they are taking on extra responsibilities such as portfolio management or mentoring junior analysts.

The senior recruitment consultant added: “Asset class specialisation remains a key driver in 
hiring trends, with competitive salaries reflecting the value placed on professionals who can bring immediate impact.”

On the other end of the spectrum, Kaizen recently observed that the financial services industry is currently “overwhelmed with quality and quantity of candidates” at executive levels, particularly for roles with salaries between $200,000 and $600,000.

The compounding effect of restructuring and redundancies have led to fewer positions available and fiercer competition. Moreover, greater M&A and consolidation has meant that a newly merged firm may not need additional people in certain C-level positions, forcing them back into the jobs market.