Swapping subprime for sunshine

Job cuts on Wall Street and in the Square Mile have led to an influx of financial professionals fleeing the rat race in London and New York, and seeking out new opportunities in the booming economies of the Gulf.

It was once a hardship posting. Now the region is attracting a new wave of financial services professionals from the US and UK, looking to swap subprime woes for sunshine and brunch.

"Placements from the US and the UK are up by 25% since the first quarter of last year," says Matt Gribble, managing director for international recruitment consultancy, Michael Page Middle East.

"The interest from clients in the US has risen from almost zero since the subprime mortgage crisis hit.

Banks and securities groups worldwide have cut about 65,000 jobs since the subprime mortgage crisis emerged last summer according to the New York State Department of Labor.

Around 34,000 jobs have been lost from Wall Street in the last nine months, while as many as 300 jobs are being shed every week in the City of London.

Gribble isn't the only recruiter in the region doing well as a result of the credit crunch. The number of employees from America and the UK jumping ship to move to the Gulf as a result of the slowdown is increasing dramatically.

"We have noticed a renewed interest in the GCC region, immediately linked to less buoyant environments elsewhere," says Barbara Van Meir, director, Financial Services for recruitment company WoodHamill Ingram.

Andy Rogerson, CEO of recruitment firm Hudson, agrees: "The credit crunch has certainly created a window of opportunity.

While European and North American markets continue to suffer from ongoing turmoil in global financial markets, the Middle East region has maintained strong economic performance according to the International Monetary Fund in its report on the Regional Economic Outlook for the Middle East and Central Asia, published last week.

"All countries in the region have been largely unscathed by the recent financial turmoil in developed countries," states the report.

Regional economies have grown at an average rate of 7% over the last five years, spurred by record oil prices and a rapidly growing non-oil sector. The economic boom has led to a recruitment crisis across the financial services industry, and the slowdown in the US is encouraging many professionals to consider a move to the Gulf.

"Clients obviously want to go to a market that is more active and buoyant. Since the economic crisis many are [complaining] of feeling useless," says Shalini Rai, a consultant for law recruitment specialists, First Counsel.

"Many of our clients from New York and London have found themselves out of a job, but equally as many are looking to this market because their own isn't throwing up any interesting projects and opportunities," agrees Gribble.

The World Bank estimates that 43 million people will enter the MENA workforce in the next decade, compared with the 47 million total job seekers between 1950 and 1990.