With millions of transactions taking place in Ireland every day, it is no wonder that around 90,000 people are employed in this sector. The importance of the sector to the Irish economy has been evidenced in recent years by the banking crisis. The recovery process is likely to last a few years, but the banking sector will be one of the first to reap the rewards of such a recovery with employment becoming increasingly available.
Banking can be divided up into three areas:
Retail Banking – This provides services to smaller business and deals with the everyday financial transaction. They provide the public with such things as mortgages, savings accounts, loans, currency exchange and credit card facilities.
Corporate Banking – This is a service provided to larger businesses. They deal with advice, lending, investing deposits and specialist products for companies with large turnovers.
This would be the area many young graduates would gain employment or even people with their Leaving cert can gain a career here and follow up on their degrees at a later stage. Most banks seek people who have good communication skills, enjoy public contact and feel comfortable handling large amounts of cash.
Irish banks have their own professional banking exams which you must be prepared to undertake if you wish to progress through the ranks. The amount of experience and the level of responsibility involved in the particular job influence associated salary levels.
Investment Banking – All of the large Banks in Ireland have their own investment banks. They also put their customer’s money to use in order to make a larger profit. This is done by investing in foreign exchange, bonds, gilts and on the stock market.
If you were to operate this end of the banking you would be known as a trader or dealer. Your job would be to buy a commodity at one price and sell it off at a higher one.
There is also an investment manager and their main function is to help their company find money to operate and grow the business, make acquisitions, plan for its financial future and manage any cash on hand. Responsibility can come fast and your problem-solving skills will be put to work quickly in corporate finance.