Standard Chartered is facing down the credit crunch and stepping up its structured finance hiring. Lenny Feder, group head of financial markets, tells us: “We are taking full advantage of the turmoil in the markets to recruit.”

While market mayhem may be making other banks cut back on structured finance, Standard Chartered has created a new team in Singapore specifically focused on these products, says Feder.

Senior recruits Marten Agren, Remy Klammers and Alexis Suzat bring to eight the number of structured finance gurus who have recently joined the bank. “We have hired the key manager, trader, and quant/IT specialist who will form the backbone of the structured trading team,” Feder adds.

Standard Chartered’s strategy shows how the bulge bracket no longer dominates structured finance hiring, says Robert Chin, a consultant at recruiters Robert Walters. “Banks which are actively hiring are the niche players, who have good brand equity in this space, rather than the large branded US or European houses. These banks can range from the Australian to the European and, in particular, the large Japanese banks.”

The buoyant commodities sector, rather than capital markets, is fuelling structured finance hiring this year, say Chin. Banks such as ANZ and Macquarie are creating jobs focused on financing the “real economy”, in areas including infrastructure and shipping, adds Angela Kuek, a manager at recruitment firm Hudson.

Chin says structured finance analysts with good origination and execution skills are most in demand. At VP level in Singapore average base salaries begin at SG$150k.

The Standard Chartered appointments are part the bank’s wider growth plans for its Singapore-based financial markets division.