Interim managers working in banks have seen their day rates rise by half since the start of the credit crunch, according to interim management solutions provider Interim Partners.

Financial services companies are engaged in a ‘war for talent’ which has driven pay for interim managers who specialise in risk and compliance work 50% higher over the last two years.

According to Interim Partners, interim managers with risk and compliance experience were typically earning up to £1,000 a day before the credit crunch, but many are now earning up to £1,500 daily as demand for their skills intensifies.

Andrew McIntee, head of financial services practice at Interim Partners, explains that this increase in rates for interim managers in risk/credit and compliance reflects a dramatic overall shift in power to the ‘middle office’ part of banks.

“Before the credit crunch, compliance and risk were sometimes seen as a necessary evil and were portrayed by sales and traders as a costly impediment to writing business.

“Now the value of these previously unsung heroes is being recognised. They now have more say over what deals get done than at anytime since the last recession.”

Interim Partners says that demand for interim managers with compliance experience is a natural response to an increasingly aggressive and intrusive approach from the Financial Services Authority (FSA).

“The FSA is now fining banks heavily not just for allowing problems to arise but for failing to put in place systems that might potentially allow problems to arise,” says McIntee.