Banks are on a hiring spree to compete for market share in sustainable debt, one of the fastest-growing parts of finance.
Firms including Citigroup Inc., HSBC Holdings Plc, and Barclays Plc have snapped up people for bond sales, research or global sustainability roles this year as they build teams. Aside from poaching talent, they are tapping expertise among scientists, politicians and think tanks.
“We are actively hiring, we typically get 100 plus CVs per role,” said Arthur Krebbers, head of sustainability, corporates at NatWest Markets Plc, whose expansion has pushed it into the top 10 sustainable debt underwriters this year.
The rush for staff shows the rise of debt tied to environmental, social or governance factors as an emerging money-spinning asset class for banks. They have already made an estimated $1.8 billion in fees so far this year from such customers, and that will likely climb in a market seen growing five-fold by Bloomberg Intelligence to $11 trillion in 2025.
This is also part of a broader effort by banks to navigate a push by global policy makers toward a lower carbon future. They have been earning even more in fees from raising money from fossil-fuel clients, yet are under pressure from activists and shareholders to exit such business.
The result is a “lot of bidding” for people experienced in ESG, with total compensation easily reaching seven figures for senior global heads, according to Chris Gower, chief executive officer at executive recruiter Lawbrook Partners. Demand is particularly rising in the U.S., with skills hard to come by compared to a more mature market in Europe or for the equity capital business, he said.
That’s a turnaround for an area previously considered niche and often lumped on junior bankers—many of whom were women. Now, as investors track female participation in boardrooms, it’s an opportunity to rise to the C-suite. Recent senior appointments include:
• Celine Herweijer as group chief sustainability officer for HSBC, previously at PricewaterhouseCoopers.
• Claire Coustar as global head of ESG for fixed income and currencies, and Debbie Jones as global head of ESG for company research at Deutsche Bank AG.
• Marie Freier as global head of ESG Research for Barclays, previously at Sanford Bernstein.
Bank of America Corp. is another expanding with C-suite representation, as its Vice Chairman Anne Finucane leads its global ESG committee.
“More women engaged in an ESG career at a time it was not popular and with more experience tend to have more senior roles today,” said Adeline Diab, head of ESG and thematic investing EMEA at Bloomberg Intelligence. “I remember male friends saying I was making a huge mistake to favor ESG to M&A as we were graduating and now they think I was visionary and they want in.”
Specialist Knowledge
Lenders are not only hiring deal bankers. As sustainable finance evolves, banks are engaging experts including scientists, data specialists and researchers, said Delphine Queniart, who became global head of sustainable finance and solutions last year at BNP Paribas SA, one of the top underwriters of ESG debt.
“From origination and structuring to syndication and sales, it is important that specialist sustainability knowledge is part of the whole issuance process,” said Queniart.