Financial Technology, or FinTech, is an emerging industry that aims to replace traditional financial services, by means of modern technology and innovations, most notably IT. This includes mobile banking, online stock trading, cryptocurrencies and many more. It is certainly a booming industry, with Statista reporting that global consumer adoption rates for FinTech have more than tripled between 2015 and 2019: from 17 percent to 34 for savings and investments, from 18 percent to 75 for money transfers and payments, from 8 percent to 29 for budgeting and financial planning, from 6 percent to 27 for borrowing, and a whopping increase for insurance – from 8 percent to 48. Furthermore, Goldman Sachs estimates FinTech’s total worth at around 4.7 trillion U.S. Dollars
This lightspeed increase in consumer demand has led to a dynamic growth of the whole sector, which in turn generates countless job opportunities for the potential job seeker. The largest FinTech company in the world, Ant Financial, is currently providing more than 10 thousand jobs. As of writing this article, a simple search for “Financial Technology” on the Jooble job search engine generates over 350 thousand vacancies, and this is just in the U.S. Worldwide demand for FinTech professionals is quite high, and still expected to rise in the following years.
Now, while it is already clear that FinTech employment opportunities are increasing, how do you know which specific jobs and career paths are the most lucrative? Let’s have a look at the most in-demand (and highest paying) jobs in FinTech in 2021:
- Online Marketing Specialist
Same as with any other online industry, marketing is vital for FinTech companies. Most of the time, building the correct marketing strategy and implementing it thoroughly represents the key to expanding the whole business. And while smaller FinTech companies prefer outsourcing their marketing efforts, the big players hire their own full-time specialists.
Aggregated job search results for “Online Marketing FinTech”: 270,180 vacancies.
Average annual salary: 60k USD.
- Compliance Expert
Compliance experts (or officers) are professionals who are extremely well-versed in legal and regulatory requirements, as well as ethical issues related to the company’s activities. By staying up to date on all requirements, conducting audits and making recommendations, compliance experts ensure that the company stays on the right track and is not exposed to legal action or reputational hazards.
Aggregated job search results for “Compliance Expert FinTech”: 238,462 vacancies.
Average annual salary: 60k USD.
- Financial Analyst
Certified Financial Analysts are responsible for financial reporting and forecasting, as well as tracking all the important operational metrics. They analyse past and present financial data, prepare financial performance reports, and create various financial models to support corporate decision-making.
Aggregated job search results for “Financial Analyst”: 195,822 vacancies.
Average annual salary: 70k USD.
- Product Manager
The responsibilities of a Product Manager in Fintech are quite similar with other industries – product planning and execution, throughout the product lifecycle. However, since the number of stakeholders is usually higher in Fintech, and so are the figures, a PM role entails more responsibility, greater attention to detail and most importantly, a business mindset.
Aggregated job search results for “Product Manager FinTech”: 686,059 vacancies.
Average annual salary: 80k USD.
- Business Development Manager
The fact that FinTech companies are growing at an extremely fast pace, is both exciting and alarming at the same time. Business growth needs to be controlled and guided in the right directions – this is where the business development managers come in. They research and find new opportunities, plan and oversee new initiatives and generally increase the value of the company.
Aggregated job search results for “Business Development Manager FinTech”: 718,355 vacancies.
Average annual salary: 80k USD.
- Risk Control Manager
Risk Control Managers use their extensive knowledge of business model analysis, portfolio management, stress testing and risk data, as well as their business and political acumen, to handle the ever-increasing risk burden for a FinTech company, by estimating and advising on risks such as financial exposure and legal compliance.
Aggregated job search results for “Risk Control Manager”: 620,771 vacancies.
Average annual salary: 90k USD.
- Cybersecurity Expert
Since the FinTech industry is all about the internet and mobile communication, it is most vulnerable to cyberattacks, which can do serious financial and reputational damage to both the company and its clients. Cybersecurity experts are the “good cops” who use their security operations management skills to investigate past incidents and to prevent any attacks in the future, by eliminating vulnerabilities and implementing data protection systems and tools.
Aggregated job search results for “Cybersecurity Expert”: 103,229 vacancies.
Average annual salary: 130k USD.
- Blockchain Developer
A blockchain developer is someone who creates systems that store blockchain data in a secure way, thus preventing changing or hacking of digital transactions. Blockchain developers are proficient with multithreaded coding in C++ and Java, cryptography, and all the latest data security tools.
Aggregated job search results for “Blockchain Developer”: 388,282 vacancies.
Average annual salary: 130k USD.
- App Developer
Besides the standard programming languages including C++, Java and Python, an app developer in FinTech uses AI, machine learning and deep learning to develop applications, most of all mobile apps.
Aggregated job search results for “App Developer FinTech”: 413,592 vacancies.
Average annual salary: 130k USD.
- Data Scientist
To make use of big data and deep learning, FinTech companies employ data scientists, who create and implement financial models and algorithms to analyse the huge amounts of data involved in the business. These professionals are masters of statistics, query languages, NoSQL databases, data science toolkits and data visualisation tools.
Aggregated job search results for “Data Scientist FinTech”: 292,058 vacancies.
Average annual salary: 170k USD.
Teodor Birsa