AI of the tiger: Banks, big tech face off over AI talent

New research has shown that banks are competing with big tech and AI firms over AI-capable workers.

Editor’s note: This story first appeared on HR Leader’s sister brand, Banking Daily.

According to new research from Deloitte, banks and financial institutions are increasingly seeking skilled tech and AI-savvy workers, bringing them into direct competition with tech and fintech organisations.

Sixty-three per cent of bank employees use AI weekly, 3 per cent above the global average for workers, while 20 per cent of them use generative AI in daily core activities, 5 per cent higher than the global average.

Yet banks are behind on maturity, with only 13 per cent of banks having reached mature AI governance, where global enterprise worldwide sits at 21 per cent.

With banks incorporating AI into daily workflows, critical systems, and more, as well as innovating and developing new AI-powered products, the need for staffers with skills in AI, data, technology, relationship management and regulation is key.

The majority of the Asia-Pacific region’s financial services workforce, which is 39 million strong, are based in China and mainland India. The two together hold 70 per cent of that workforce.

As a result, financial hubs are seeing particularly strong competition for staff. Tokyo has around 434,000 financial services workers, Shanghai Pudong follows with 350,000, Hong Kong with 269,000 and Singapore with 205,000.

To encourage AI-skilled labour to join their workforces, banks are introducing AI-specific teams and roles, such as chief AI officers, creating a parallel to tech giants. The Commonwealth Bank of Australia appointed its first chief AI scientist and is pushing for technical density within its workforce.

While staff numbers are dwindling at banks, companies are axing traditional roles and maintaining staff that are AI-trained, or training existing staff.

JPMorgan has cut large numbers of staff as AI has reduced the need for back office operational headcount, 30 to 40 per cent in some units, but its numbers continue to grow, as the group hires AI-trained staff. From mid-2026, the firm’s global workforce rose from around 331,394 staff at the start of the year to 336,509 midway through 2026.

“There will be all different types of jobs, and I think we will be hiring more ​AI people and fewer bankers in certain categories, ​and it will make them more productive,” JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon told Bloomberg News.

Want to see more stories from trusted news sources?
Make HR Leader a preferred news source on Google.