Hiring in the FX technology space continues apace, though investment banks are exercising more caution than six months ago.

Foreign exchange has kept on growing as other financial sectors struggle. The latest figures from the Bank of International Settlements show that average daily volumes reached $3.2 trillion last year.

Julian Wantling, MD and London head of FX distribution at UBS, says: “When volatility increases in other markets FX tends to be traded more, with active currency hedging of underlying equity and bond exposures.”

Hand in hand with this surge in new business is the move to electronic foreign exchange trading (eFX). A study by Celent predicts 75% of inter-dealer spot market and 50% of dealer-to-client volumes will be traded electronically by 2010.

Rory Ferguson, managing director of IT recruiters the JM Group, says: “It’s been a welcome area of demand for us this year. Hiring in FX technology is not entirely inoculated, but as banks are looking to drive alternative revenue streams it’s high on the agenda, and we’ve seen demand for business analysts, developers and project managers in this product line.”

Paul Elworthy, associate director in the IT and banking finance division of recruitment firm Hudson, says FX hiring is still strong but has seen a slowdown from the dizzy heights experienced towards the latter part of last year.

However, he adds that a high degree of numeracy and business knowledge is essential for working in FX, as is a knowledge of object orientated software like Java and C#.

A good understanding of third-party systems like Murex, Calypso and Summit is also valued.

A project manager in the FX space can expect as much as £100k, while a business analyst could command £65k-£75k, or £400-£500 a day as a contractor. Meanwhile, a front-office developer with C#/.Net and strong product knowledge could command up to £700 a day on a contract basis.