Credit crunch aside, the mushrooming of hedge funds in Asia is sending reverberations through the job market.

Although prime brokers are likely to be affected by the credit crunch as banks impose more stringent lending limits to hedge funds, several institutions have been expanding their Asia-Pac prime brokerage operations this year. Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley and UBS have all added staff, for example.

“I would say jobs within these roles are growing faster than the hedge funds themselves. There is more competition among the banks to offer these services; more new players in the marketplace,” says Matthew Hoyle, director at Matthew Hoyle International.

Declan O’Sullivan, director at Kerry Consulting, reports the same picture. “I would say the growth of hedge funds in Asia is stretching the resource talent pool even more as banks hire across the board,” he says.

Hedge fund sales professionals – people who sell financial instruments to hedge funds – rank high in demand. According to Hoyle, base salaries for good hedge fund sales professionals now start at US$100k – even if inexperienced. Someone with five years’ hedge fund sales experience in a bank can command a package that includes bonus of US$500k and upwards.

In prime brokerage, clearing and custody departments are hiring account managers for about US$80k. Commercial directors with regional responsibilities get circa US$350k.

Securities lending desks – which typically sit within prime brokerage – are hiring traders with one to two years’ experience at about US$70k plus bonus. With five to six years’ work under their belts, candidates can expect US$150k to US$200k plus bonus, bringing the final package to about US$500k.

For less exciting areas such as fund administration (producing valuation reports), banks typically hire candidates with audit backgrounds. The pay varies but on average, those with four to five years’ experience can command about US$70k as a salary; bonuses in this area are (sadly) minimal.