Financial services set for hiring spree for AI experts in 2026
British banks and finance firms are hunting for behavioural science and psychology experts for ethical AI jobs, as worries about misusing the technology build, experts have said.
A desire to accelerate recruitment in 2026 comes after one of the worst years for hiring in the financial services sector since the 2008 financial crisis.
Some 55 per cent of financial firms plan to hire more staff this year, according to a survey by KPMG UK.
Of those considering a hiring spree, more than half expect recruitment to focus on technology.
AI skills are most in demand when it comes to hiring people with experience outside financial services, while 57 per cent of those planning to recruit at boardroom level said acquiring AI capabilities was the biggest focus this year.
KPMG UK polled 150 leaders in UK financial services firms for its research.
Leanne Allen, head of AI advisory for the consultancy group, said she was noticing some financial firms shifting their focus from the tech side of AI to how people were actually using it.
“What I’m seeing is that there’s a huge pressure, and this goes across all sectors, to adopt AI,” she told the Press Association.
“There are cost pressures, the need to drive efficiencies … and there’s still that fear in terms of job displacement,” she said, adding that it is not just worries about AI replacing people’s jobs, but concerns that workers who do not use AI will be replaced those who do.
Some workers may be “monitored and measured for how much AI they’re using throughout the day”, she said.
This environment is creating fresh concerns for financial services firms, including some banks, such as complacency among staff who are encouraged to use AI at work, or misusing the tools that are available to them.
‘AI is no longer just a productivity tool’
Earlier this month, a review into the banning of Maccabi Tel Aviv football fans from attending a football match against Aston Villa last November found that an “AI hallucination” produced by Microsoft Copilot had helped police justify the move.
The error meant that a non-existent game between Tel Aviv and West Ham had been referenced in a report produced by the police force prior to the game.
Ms Allen said firms were “definitely looking at how they can manage those more human, behavioural risks” amid such incidents.
But she added: “You can’t expect a human to capture every failure of a model … in my opinion, you shouldn’t put all that pressure onto a human because of the level of anxiety which could lead to non-adoption of AI.”
Karim Haji, KPMG UK’s head of financial services, said: “AI is no longer just a productivity tool, it is actively shaping who firms hire and who they don’t.
“We’re already seeing a rise in ethical AI leadership roles going to people with expertise in behavioural and social science, law or psychology rather than purely technical or risk-based experience, this is helping firms design AI that is not only valuable, but safe, ethical and trustworthy.”
The potential for stronger hiring this year could come as good news for job hunters after a weak year for the financial sector.
2025 was the only year apart from the pandemic year, 2020, that vacancies in the industry had fallen since 2008, according to KPMG and REC’s UK jobs report from last month.
By Anna Wise, Press Association Business Reporter