Pay Survey: Fund Manager, the New Investment Banker

Rising competition between the asset management and investment banking sectors are resulting in rising pay levels to attract the best talent. Employees of Pimco, Man Group and Henderson were reported to have received £436,000, £232,000 and £215,000 respectively last year according to research by FTfm. Pay packages of salaries, benefits and bonuses outstripped the investment banking sector with an average of only £212,000. Goldman Sachs pay levels averaged £232,000. Just beneath this threshold were companies such as BlackRock at £188,000, Schroders at £185,000 and Jupiter £198,000.

At the senior level, pay packages will “generally be higher than in investment banking” according to Logan Naidu, of the financial services recruitment firm Dartmouth Partners. Tim Wright of the consultancy PwC says that competition has been rising as investment banks seek senior management and office staff with more experience. Pressure has risen on fund companies to raise payscales and match the innovative perks often offered by banks. To avoid Europe’s bonus cap, Bank of America, HSBC and Barclays have all used these special perks as techniques to offer extra compensation.

According to Rupert Reed of the headhunting firm Godliman Partners, the highest level of fundgroups, including Pimco and Bluebay, have doubled salaries over the last year and a half in order to keep pay “in line with investment banks” with others companies expected to follow. Despite these pay increases, Reed believes that some sectors such as asset management employees, global fixed incomes and investment grade credit have seen lower increases because those fields are considered “less trendy.”  Yet, Logan Naidu has noted that even junior employees have seen their salaries rise, despite variables that can cause pay scales at hedge fund groups to rise or fall due to changes in the level of performance on a year to year basis.