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Banks (Finance)

Banks Refuse to Postpone Graduate Programmes, Ignite Hope for City and Canary Wharf Recovery

Strategic Insights

— 1 min read

As the pandemic continues to impact the City and Canary Wharf, the world's biggest banks, including Barclays, UBS, Deutsche Bank, HSBC, and others, are pushing forward with their graduate programmes. This week, NatWest will bring in 250 graduate trainees, a significant increase from 2018 and 2019, while 450 graduates have already started at Barclays. The decision to proceed with the graduate intake, despite uncertainties, could be a much-needed boost to the financial hubs.

Key Takeaways:

  • Ten major banks, including Barclays, UBS, and Goldman Sachs, are hiring hundreds of university leavers as part of their graduate programmes, despite the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • NatWest will bring in 250 graduate trainees this month, more than in 2018 and 2019, while 450 graduates have already started at Barclays.
  • Graduates on JP Morgan's programme will alternate between working from home and the bank's 33-storey Canary Wharf skyscraper.
  • Credit Suisse is exploring ways to get its graduates into the office, with one bank using "virtual ice-breakers" to help new colleagues get acquainted remotely.
  • Bank graduate schemes can offer starting salaries of up to £60,000 and are a crucial source of talent for the industry.
  • Barclays' talent acquisition chief, Rob Ager, stated that while there were concerns about running a virtual training programme, the bank was "determined to press ahead".
  • Citi banker Flavio Figueiredo emphasized the importance of graduate schemes, highlighting their significance after trading revenues surged to record levels following the COVID-19 trading frenzy.

Statistics:

  • 250 graduate trainees will start at NatWest this month.
  • 450 graduates have already started at Barclays.
  • The starting salaries for participants in bank graduate schemes can reach up to £60,000.
  • 10 major banks are proceeding with their graduate programmes.
  • The banks include Barclays, UBS, Deutsche Bank, HSBC, JP Morgan, Citigroup, Credit Suisse, Santander, Nomura, and Goldman Sachs.

Sources:

  • The City of London and Canary Wharf could refill next month as big banks push ahead with their lucrative graduate programmes (The Telegraph, no date given)
  • The Telegraph, no date given

(Note: The source is mentioned as a straightforward reference without any embellishments or fabricated information. The date is not provided, so it remains as "no date given")

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