It’s safe to say that Ireland’s financial regulator is about to be a lot busier.

It’s having to oversee the recapitalisation of the domestic banks, reduce their reliance on government funding, as well as make a raft of regulatory changes to bring Ireland in line with what’s happening globally. Not surprisingly, it’s on a major recruitment drive.

The regulator plans on hiring 160 people this year – to bring its headcount up to 520 – and then a further 200 over the next two years.

Matthew Elderfield, head of financial regulation at the newly-created Central Bank of Ireland, outlined the plans in a recent interview with the Irish Times.

Having taken up the role in January, Elderfield was surprised to see just how understaffed the Irish regulator was compared to its international counterparts and is making moves to correct this.

The regulator tells us that it is seeking to “recruit a significant number of people with a range of expertise, background and experience for key priority positions”.

Current live roles include those around compliance, anti-money laundering, risk management and policy experts. The enforcement team is also expected to need around 60 financial accountants.

The pay at the regulator doesn’t appear to be great though – Elderfield himself accepted €340k for his new position, having previously earned €533k within his role at the Bermuda financial regulator.

Recruiters tell us that other recent hires have also taken lower salaries, instead favouring greater job security and the challenge the roles present.

James Hayes, manager – banking & financial services at Robert Walters in Ireland, says: “These roles are an appealing prospect for those out of work or concerned about their jobs, but high-performers are being very well looked after currently.”