The impact of the global financial crisis, coupled with the subsequent tighter regulation of financial services will present recruiters with both challenges and significant opportunities as a result claims Bill Haynes, chairman of the new Recruitment and Employment Confederation’s accounting and financial services group.

Speaking at the REC’s new group launch in London last week, Haynes told recruiters that the sector had undergone “a huge amount of change”.

The landscape of financial regulation has changed dramatically, he said, from a once relatively light touch environment to one of “more discipline, more rigour and more scrutiny”.

Haynes, also chief executive of recruiter Verridian, noted the fact that, while this makes life “more demanding” for recruiters, it also provides opportunities for those who meet high quality standards.

Martin Tuckwell, a former City regulator, told the audience of finance recruiters that the prospect of more rigorous and more intrusive regulation by the Financial Services Authority had important implications for recruiters.

Among these were:

• a smaller pool of talent as staff aged over 50 decided that the new regime, including the requirement for higher qualifications, “wasn’t worth the hassle”

• a return of large-scale sales staff forces within financial services as remuneration moved away from commission to payment for advice

• many more compliance staff

• fewer independent financial advisers, with those remaining concentrating on higher value clients