City bank jobs boost Robert Walters’ fees
A GROWING demand for professionals in the financial services sector has boosted recruitment giant Robert Walters’ business after the group posted positive second quarter trading results.
Robert Walters’ net fee income for the first half of the year rose by 45 per cent to £72.3m, with second quarter income growth up by 59 per cent to £39.7m.
Founder and chief executive Robert Walters said that an acceleration in recruitment during the second quarter helped to bolster the group’s financial performance.
He said: “Our Asia Pacific business has delivered an outstanding performance and we intend to continue growing our office footprint across the region to build on our market leading position. Our UK business has also experienced increased levels of activity, most notably in the financial services sector.”
Fee income in the Asia Pacific region almost doubled to £19.5m during the last three months as compared to the same period last year, while UK fees were up to £11.6m, marking a 36 per cent hike from 2009. Despite posting a 25 per cent rise in European fee income, the market remains difficult.
Analysts say Robert Walters has positioned itself well in the downturn.
“We have always maintained that Robert Walters is well placed to survive the downturn in the economic cycle; it has good geographical and operational diversity and a strong balance sheet,” said Caroline de La Soujeole at Seymour Pierce.