In our 2026 Annual Pay & Hiring Survey, we asked business leaders, talent teams and heads of functions, their plans for the next 12 months. With data from nearly 200 professionals across the financial services sector, including FinTech, private equity and venture capital firms, we can reveal the hiring trends across this vast industry.
Continue reading to learn about financial services recruitment in 2026, particularly for go-to-market, commercial hiring.
Key takeaways
- Hiring intent is active but cautious: 54% plan to hire this year
- Salary pressure is the biggest barrier to growth: 52% cite salary expectations vs budget as the main challenge
- Marketing, product and sales lead hiring demand across financial services businesses
- Soft skills are the defining factor: 68% prioritise communication and problem-solving over technical skills
- Hiring managers are becoming overwhelmed: 55% report high volumes of unsuitable applications
More than half of financial services firms are hiring in 2026
The financial services industry is taking a cautious approach to recruitment in 2026, with 54% planning to engage permanent talent, interims or a combination of both. Following a difficult 2025, where over a third of businesses hired fewer heads originally planned, firms are reacting by focusing on strategic hiring.
How recruitment will change throughout the year
Our data reflects a largely positive outlook for the year. We expect all businesses to assess their recruitment strategy every quarter as the political, economic and technology context evolves.
In fact, we’ve already seen the market pick up speed in the first six months. Positively, most hires we’ve worked in the financial services sector are newly created roles – representing a clear growth trend.
“After a few stagnant years of consolidation, restructuring and 'waiting to see what happens', Q1 this year has felt different,” says head of financial services recruitment, Jaemien Serrano, “Budgets are moving, growth is back on the agenda, and leaders who haven't hired marketing talent in years (or ever before) are now scoping roles from scratch.
But the market hasn't fully recovered. Scrutiny on headcount and spend is still intense and hiring a brand-new role comes with a specific pressure that a backfill doesn't.”
What skills are in-demand in the financial sector?
According to our data, recruitment is concentrated around marketing*, product management and sales jobs.
As banking and financial services firms prepare to launch new products and services to their customers, they’re onboarding the talent required to build and launch effective go-to-market strategies.
*The majority of respondents from the financial services sector were marketers (36%), which helps to explain this trend.
Soft skills for financial services talent
In 2026, soft skills are just as important as technical skills (perhaps more so).
When asked what they look for when hiring, employers placed ‘strong communication and stakeholder management skills’ and ‘problem-solving and critical thinking skills’ as their top priority (68%). Meanwhile, ‘technical skills’ sat alongside ‘industry experience’ and ‘values alignment’ (47%).
As such, those looking for a financial services role should concentrate on selling their commercial impact and adaptability.
How to successfully hire GTM talent in 2026
When hiring new talent for the first time, you’re not just filling a role – a cohesive recruitment strategy is key.
Jaemien Serrano says, “You're not just finding the right person, you're justifying the role's existence at the same time. There's very little room to get it wrong.
When you’re hiring a first ‘Product Marketer/ Head of Content/ CMO’ for a business that's never had one, the brief itself becomes the hard part. Getting that wrong, in a market where every hiring decision is under the microscope, is an expensive mistake.”
What challenges face financial services hiring managers?
According to hiring managers, the biggest challenge they face is the disparity between salary expectations and budget (52%). One of the key solutions is contract hiring. Interim staff do not only act as a budget-friendly engagement option but also allow organisations to trial a role in-house before hiring permanently.
Other challenges include:
- Limited employer brand awareness (26%)
- Speed of hiring (21%)
- Unclear or evolving role requirements (20%)
- Competition from other employers (20%)
To find out more about how we can help solve each of these unique challenges, get in touch with our specialist recruiters.
3Search is a specialist financial services recruitment agency
Our dedicated team of financial services recruiters are role specialists. With sales, marketing, product, digital, communications and bid management consultants, we’re best equipped to match you with your next hire.
