FinTech is where technology meets the world of finance and, like most things to do with money, it can be very lucrative.
FinTech is often summarised as ABCD: AI, Blockchain, Cloud Computing, and Big Data (the D being for Data), which means that most jobs in FinTech are usually related to one of these four key areas, though there are exceptions.
Here are some of the jobs and careers you can get in FinTech.
The Qualifications Needed to Work in FinTech
FinTech is a broad industry with roles across the board. While there isn't an exact qualification to get into FinTech in Australia, the two main branches concerned are finance or IT.
However, business and marketing qualifications can also be useful for some of the roles concerned with FinTech company operations rather than the FinTech products and services themselves.
Generally, an undergraduate degree is enough to get started, but certain areas of FinTech, particularly roles unique to FinTech, may need postgraduate qualifications.
As FinTech is relatively new, the number of universities offering FinTech qualifications is quite low, but we can expect this number to increase as demand for the industry increases.
App Development
The ABCD of FinTech regularly involves apps and there are people needed with an understanding of programming and finance needed to plan and develop these apps.
With app development, there's demand in and out of FinTech so this could be a good career choice for many people with the right set of skills.
What exactly are these skills? Programming skills to be precise. Employers will often look for skills in programming languages such as Python, C++, Objective-C, HTML5, and Java or a background in UX or UI, which are also hugely useful for apps.
Blockchain Development
As one of four main parts of FinTech, the blockchain plays a large role in the success of many FinTech companies and the demand for it is massive.
Demand for blockchain development skills is likely to outperform most other skills in the coming years and with so few developers available, there are around 10 jobs for every developer.
This does mean that we're likely to see a lot of people move towards blockchain development so it's a good idea to be one of the first rather than one of the last.
Business Development Manager
This is one of the FinTech roles that require fewer IT or programming skills as it's more about how the companies are run rather than the FinTech products or services that they offer.
However, this doesn't mean you can do it with no knowledge of FinTech. It just means that you mightn't need to know several programming languages. Instead, a business development manager will be tasked with how to move the company forwards by creating plans and strategies for the future.
Compliance Expert
Compliance isn't the “C” in the ABCD of FinTech, but you'd be forgiven for thinking it is considering just how big a role it plays in FinTech.
Since FinTech blends finance and technology, it's at the behest of the regulations for both and these areas have a lot of them.
The job of compliance experts is to ensure that Australia's best FinTech companies are safe from legal action against them for breaching rules and regulations. They'll often try to keep on top of all the applicable regulations through audits, which means they have to stay abreast of updates and changes to them.
Cybersecurity Analyst
FinTech is one of the areas particularly susceptible to cyber attacks since a lot of firms hold both financial assets and lots of user data, both things that cybercriminals like to exploit or steal.
This means that the demand for cybersecurity is huge in FinTech and people working in this area will find that their skills are in demand.
A cybersecurity analyst will look to evaluate a company or firm's security, protocols, and procedures and provide insights or suggestions to improve them.
In a way, they'll be looking for the same weaknesses as cybercriminals, but they'll let the company know when they find them rather than exploiting them.
Data Scientist
Data is a huge part of FinTech and companies using it have ridiculous amounts of it. For things like deep learning, insights, analytics, making projections, etc., data scientists are needed to get the most information they can.
As data scientists require advanced degrees, they tend to earn more than some of the other jobs that we've listed here. However, that also means that you need to spend more time and money getting the necessary education to become one.
Financial Analyst
As the name suggests, a financial analyst will be expected to look at financial data and provide insights that can be used for making decisions, forecasting, or putting plans into place for the future.
They'll need to consider both present-day data and historical data, though the latter may be harder to find, especially in a relatively new area such as FinTech.
Generally, financial analysts will have completed an undergraduate degree majoring in areas such as accounting, finance, statistics, economics, or business.
In addition to their qualifications, they'll need excellent analytical skills, an eye for detail, and communication skills, especially since they'll need to communicate their findings and insights to others.
Business Analyst
Much like financial analysts, business analysts will need to look at data, provide forecasts, and put plans in place for the future.
However, while financial analysts will look more closely at markets and trends so that investments can be made, business analysts will look into how a company is run to highlight any current or future problems in operations.
They'll constantly be looking for areas that can be improved to ensure that any company is running like a well-oiled machine, which can include everything from IT to company workplace policies.
Qualifications in business studies are good for this line of work.
Marketing Specialists
Whenever any product or service is being sold, it needs to be marketed. Marketing specialists or marketers are needed in FinTech to ensure that the companies hit their targets and grow.
While marketers won't need to know any programming languages, they'll still need to be well-versed in technology and finance so that they can effectively market a firm's products or services.
Marketers usually have an undergraduate degree in marketing or business studies, but further study and postgraduate degrees are possible and recommended for higher-paying positions in more competitive environments.
Product Manager
A product manager is another role in our list that isn't unique to FinTech. The job of a product manager is to work out things like what customers need, want, and expect from products as well as create the strategy for products and services throughout their life cycle.
This is a role that includes gathering data, analysing it, setting goals for products, and creating a product strategy.
With the amount of money involved in FinTech, product managers can potentially earn more than their counterparts in other industries but will also have more expected of them in an industry with lots of data on hand.
Why You Should Work in FinTech
While some of these jobs are exclusive to FinTech and others are available in other industries, you might be wondering why somebody would want to work in FinTech.
Here are just a few excellent reasons to work in FinTech.
Career Development
FinTech has a broad range of careers, but it also has a lot of career opportunities with some overlap. This means that in addition to upwards mobility, there are also a lot of options to pivot to other roles, try your hand at new things, and develop skills in one role that leads to another.
Exciting Startup Opportunities
The FinTech industry is relatively young and this means there are lots of startups. While startups might not be for everyone, FinTech can boast a healthy breeding ground with a lot of support out there for them.
With such high demand and the option to pivot, startups in FinTech aren't nearly as risky as they are in other industries.
Lots of Job Opportunities
Just from this article, you can see that there are plenty of different jobs available in FinTech. There is also a high demand for a lot of these jobs with many vacancies across the board. With a specialisation in FinTech, most employees shouldn't have too much trouble finding work.
New Career Opportunities
As a young(ish) industry, FinTech is constantly changing and evolving. This means that we don't even know what the future might hold and what careers will be available to people in FinTech even soon.
In five or ten years, there could be a lot of people in roles that don't exist yet and the first people to likely be in these roles will be the people already working in the industry.
It's young, it's exciting, and it's lucrative, making FinTech an excellent career decision for anyone, no matter what role they end up in.
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