Hunt the hedge fund jobs

Where are all the hedge funds roles in Australia?

The stats suggest there should be plenty of them. At AU$62.7bn, Australia's hedge fund industry is pretty large; it outstrips both Japan (AU$22.3bn) and Hong Kong and Singapore (AU$19.6bn and AU$6bn respectively) combined.

Opportunities in Asian hedge funds are definitely growing, says headhunter John Coles, with disheartened fund managers joining, or establishing hedge funds where they earn a lot more money he tells eFinancialCareers. But, even so, demand for staff should be astronomical. Assets under management rocketed from US$10bn to US$60.1bn between 2002 and 2006. That is a lot of managing and a lot of selling.

The answer to the conundrum lies offshore. Edmund Gill of recruiter Hayes says hedge funds need hugely traded volatile stocks ñ we're talking New York, London and Tokyo. Australia has assets in abundance but a tiny stockmarket to play on.

This isn't to say there aren't hedge fund-related roles in Australia, there just a lot fewer of them. Banks want a slice and are employing people to service hedge funds ñ selling them products or ideas and financing them, says a spokeswoman for Man Investments, Australia's biggest fund of hedge funds.

Hedge fund sales jobs in banks pay AU$140k-AU$160k with varying bonuses for a mid-range person, says Michael Lee at recruiter Jon Michel in Melbourne. More experienced hires can command starting salaries of AU$170k, plus bonuses of 100% to 200%, he adds.

So, if hedge funding is for you, go north. Or start your own.