Hong Kong has firmly established itself as an international financial centre and has been able to attract high quality companies to list on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, including companies from China as well as other parts of the world.

Graduates seeking career opportunities in the sector may find growing competition from international graduates, as the industry requires caliber candidates with board horizons and international perspectives in order to stay competitive in this international financial centre.

• Accountancy
• Actuarial Work
• Banking
• Insurance

 

Accountancy

Accountancy is a relatively stable profession and provides services needed by all businesses that require statutory audits. Other than the “Big 4” (KPMG, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Deloitte, and Ernst& Young), opportunities can be found in small- and medium-sized accountancy firms. Standard work covers audit, tax and financial assurance. In larger firms and those specialising in consulting, opportunities can be found in business consulting, corporate finance, business fraud and investigation services, technology risk consulting, global risk management, corporate restructuring and insolvency.

In addition to a university degree, possessing a professional accountancy qualification such as CPA Australia, ACA or ACCA will be an advantage. These are popular options for those from other disciplines who wish to enhance their skills or switch career tracks.

Positions / Job Titles Offered    

• Staff Accountant (Audit / Tax / Financial Assurance)             
• Consultant (Business Consulting / Corporate Finance / Business Fraud & Investigation Services / Technology Risk Consulting / Global Risk Management Solutions Associate, etc.)     

Typical Job Nature/ Job Duties                       

• to maintain accounts of the company and prepare financial statements and generate weekly, monthly and annual reports

General Requirements

• Degree holder of any disciplines (major in accountancy may be an added advantage)
  • Possession of relevant professional qualifications
  • Working experience in accounting, auditing or finance field an added advantage
  • Strong communication skills, good command of both spoken English and Chinese (Mandarin)
  • Well-versed with Microsoft Office applications and good PC knowledge and programming
  • Able to work under pressure and meet tight deadlines
  • Analytical, independent, proactive and willing to take challenges and flexible to work requirements

Related Associations/ Useful Links

ACCA	http://hongkong.accaglobal.com
Hong Kong Initute of Certified Public Accountants (HKICPA)	http://www.hkicpa.org.hk
Hong Kong Accoutning Professionals Assoication	http://www.apa.org.hk/

 

Actuarial Work

Actuarial professionals are often associated with insurance, but, in fact, they provide a variety of professional services across a wide range of business and social contexts. The actuarial profession in Hong Kong is overseen by the Actuarial Society of Hong Kong. More information about career as an actuary can be obtained at http://www.actuaries.org.hk/upload/File/IntroBrochureEng.pdf

In the financial sector, investment actuaries are concerned with risk management as well as with maximising returns on their employers’ institutional asset portfolio. They would be involved in providing specialist services such as portfolio management, asset-liability modeling (including stochastic modeling), performance measurement, investment indices, quantitative investment techniques and risk control techniques for fund managers.

Positions / Job Titles Offered

• Actuarial Assistant, Actuarial Analyst, Product Actuary, Risk Management Actuary

General Requirements

• A degree or equivalent in actuarial science or a related subject such as mathematics, statistics or accountancy is a prerequisite
• For entry level, obtained some basic actuarial professional examinations/ papers is a definite advantage
• A strong background in mathematics and excellent academic records is essential
• Analytical and problem solving skills and be able to think and explain matters clearly and logically
• Good command of English and Chinese
• Good PC knowledge, with IT programming skills is an advantage
• Able to work under pressure and meet tight deadlines

Related Associations/ Useful Links

The Society of Actuaries SOA (US)	www.soa.org
Casualty Actuarial Society (US)	www.casact.org
Institute and Faculty of Actuaries (UK)	www.actuaries.org.uk
The Institute of Actuaries of Australia	www.actuaries.asn.au
Actuarial Society of Hong Kong	http://www.actuaries.org.hk

                                                                                                                             

Banking

Traditionally, the banking sector covers the global investment banks that provide a broad range of financial services to their clients, including raising corporate finance and trading in capital markets. Some firms specialize in specific areas of finance such as asset management, hedge funds, private banking to high-net-worth individuals, venture capital, and private equity and risk. Of course, there are the retail banks which offer corporate and mortgage services, and more commonly, retail banking services to the general public.

Graduates from accounting and finance backgrounds usually have an advantage when applying for bank jobs, but applicants from other disciplines will also be considered for trainee/service positions. Internship experience will be useful to help you stand out from other applicants

Positions / Job Titles Offered

• Customer Service Representative
• Management Trainee
• Credit Analyst/Loan Officer
• Trust Officer
• Mortgage Banker
• Other positions in banking involve accounting, marketing and advertising, securities transfer, wire operations, private banking, personnel, operations etc.

Typical Job Nature/ Job Duties

Customer Service Representative (CSR):

• CSR usually work at branches. The job duties include opening new accounts, originating mortgage loan, selling financial products such as credit cards, installment loans and personal lines of credit, solving customer problems etc. CSR may also be required to act as tellers by some banks

Management Trainee:

• Trainees usually gain exposure through working in various divisions in the training period before starting to specialize in one department

Credit Analyst/Loan Officer:

• This position not only requires that you evaluate business and consumer loan applications made to your bank, but also sell loans to targeted businesses and customers proactively. Your duties include identifying target customers and their needs, selling relevant loan products, preparing evaluation reports after projecting companies’ future cash flow, evaluating their current financial soundness and loan service ability

Trust Officer:

• Trust Officers deliver trust services, financial products and advice to upscale clientele. The job requires a person to have a solid understanding of the products and operational systems of the bank, estate law and taxation system of Hong Kong

Mortgage Banker:

• Mortgage bankers make mortgage loans to homebuyers and businesses
• The job requires frequent contact with real estate professionals, lawyers, credit checks, and dealing with new buyers

General Requirements

• A degree holder in business administration, accountancy or economics may be advantageous but not a must
• Relevant internship experience will be useful to help fresh graduates stand out from other applicants
• Chinese and English language proficiency
• Good communication and interpersonal skills
• Good analytical skills
• Motivation and commitment, integrity, team player
• Ability to complete tasks under tight deadline

Related Associations/ Useful Links

The Hong Kong Association of Banks	http://www.hkab.org.hk
Hong Kong Monetary Authority	http://www.hkma.gov.hk
Treasury Markets Association	http://www.tma.org.hk

 

Insurance

Hong Kong has the second most developed insurance market in the region after Japan in term of per capita insurance premium. Being a leading insurance centre in Asia, Hong Kong has attracted many of the world's top insurance companies.The insurance industry is one of the Hong Kong's major employment sectors.

Hong Kong insurance industry is under the governance of Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) and the self-regulatory system of insurance intermediaries, insurance agents, their responsible officers and technical representatives need to be registered with and monitored by the Insurance Agents Registration Board set up by The Hong Kong Federation of Insurers.  Apart from staff specialising in selling insurance, setting rates and handling claims, the insurance industry has a heavy demand for employees in support areas, departments and functional divisions such as accounting, administration, computer services, personnel management and research, depending on the scale and size of the company.

Positions / Job Titles Offered

• Agent/broker
• Surveyor/Loss Control Specialist
• Underwriter
• Claims Adjuster
• Actuary
• Support Work in the areas such as accounting, administration, computer services, personnel management and research; there are many departments and functional divisions depending on the scale and size of the company

Typical Job Nature/ Job Duties

Agent/broker:

• Agents and brokers are to advise people and organizations on how to protect things they value by selling customers insurance contracts. An understanding of insurance contracts is essential

 Surveyor/Loss Control Specialist:

• The job is to help keep accident and losses of the insurance company that you are serving to the minimum. Large insurance companies are used to employ Surveyor/Loss Control Specialist to assess risk level and insurability of property and liability insurance before granting policies. Surveyors/Loss Control Specialist are required to prepare reports with dimensional plans, make recommendation on acceptance or declination of the risk, and provide suggestions to remedy the unsatisfactory features and reduce the risk level when necessary. Frequent travel or outdoor inspection jobs shold be expected.

 Underwriter:

• Underwriters decide whether to provide insurance to applicants seeking coverage. Underwriters are responsible to examine the insurance application forms, proposals, medical records and surveyor reports and other relevant data to evaluate applicants’ exposure to risk and decide whether applicants meet insurers’ standards. Underwriters are also responsible for issuing policy documents, and in some occasion, setting prices for insurance applicants.

 Claims Adjuster:

• Claims Adjusters negotiate insurance claims with people have experienced a loss. They need to investigate and determine the extent of companies’ liabilities, and to settle claims.

 

Actuary:

• Actuary specializes in statistical and financial problems in life insurance and calculates the probabilities of death, sickness, injury, disability, unemployment, retirement and property loss. They also construct mortality tables to calculate the premium rates and policy values for life insurance policies and pension schemes.

General Requirements

• A degree holder of any disciplines
• For trainee positions, a background in accounting, finance or economics is preferred but not a must
• Agents/ brokers and technical representatives are required to pass relevant Insurance Intermediaries Qualifying Examinations and obtain licenses set by the governance authority
• For a position which requires calculating premium rates and handling quantitative figures, a degree in actuarial science or a related subject such as mathematics, accountancy or statistics is a prerequisite
• A good command of Chinese and English is an advantage
• Good PC knowledge
• Able to work under pressure and meet tight deadlines

Useful Resources

Financial Services Development Council Practitioner Speakers Series

Through a series of lectures, leaders from the financial services industry provided students with the understanding of different career choices in the field. Click here to recapture the events!

Related Associations

The Hong Kong Federation of Insurers	http://www.hkfi.org.hk
Office of the Commissioner of Insurance, HKSAR	http://www.oci.gov.hk
Professional Insurance Brokers Association	http://www.piba.org.hk
Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC)	http://www.sfc.hk
Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority (MPFA)	http://www.mpfa.org.hk

                                                                                                                     

 

(Sources from The CUHK Careers Guide 2012)