Data storage is going through the roof, and banks are grappling for IT experts to help them manage it.

A report by technology consultants Bearing Point says that financial institutions are focusing on data management because of compliance issues surrounding regulation like MiFID, Basel II, Sarbanes Oxley and the US National Market System, all of which require data to be stored for years and have piled pressure on current systems.

As a result, recruiters say banks are looking for people who can link together existing internal systems to optimise data mining capabilities.

Simon Walker, director of recruiters Project Partners, says: “Front office in any investment bank or fund management house, there will be an array of systems across different asset classes. However, they want to cross-reference those systems against each other, and we’re seeing a great demand for data architects with a good understanding of multiple asset classes.”

Knowledge of Oracle or SQL is essential and a good overall understanding of systems based around Java and C++ is an advantage. Likewise, many data warehousing platforms such as GoldenSource and Cadis are off-the-shelf solutions, and familiarity with them will be helpful.

However, the real demand isn’t for general software understanding, but more for people who can manipulate the data to work for the organisation.

Paul Elworthy, associate director in the IT and banking finance division of recruitment firm Hudson, says: “In automated trading systems, for example, the big issue for a data architect is the internal latency – how long it takes to process the data and make a decision based on that. Good staff who understand how to reduce latency without compromising the system’s integrity are a real value-add for the front office.”

Pay is pretty tasty as well. A data architect can haul in £80k to £90k, or £600 to £700 a day as a contractor. Data analysts, meanwhile, can expect £65k to £75k, with contractor rates coming in at £500 to £550.