News & insights

Scotland’s financial services sector has launched its second Changing Customer Needs report spotlighting the sector’s ongoing commitment to improving customer outcomes against a backdrop of changes to the economic, regulatory and industry landscape. The report highlights the financial services sector’s response to evolving customer requirements across Scotland, and examples of collaboration and innovation that are already making a difference to customer outcomes. 

The path to a successful career in finance is evolving. While the "university-first" route was once considered the only gateway to the industry, Ruairidh Kilgour is part of a new generation of professionals choosing to bypass the lecture hall in favour of immediate, high-impact experience. Now a manager at a global consulting firm, Ruairidh opted for a Financial Services apprenticeship to secure a "massive head start" on his peers. By balancing the academic rigor of the ICAS Chartered Accountant (CA) qualification with the realities of client-facing work, Ruairidh’s journey offers a blueprint for how young professionals can build significant career capital from day one.

This blog, authored by Scottish Financial Enterprise Young Professional's Climate Change & Journey to Net-Zero Workstream, reflects on a recent roundtable discussion with professional and financial services members of SFE on the topic of financing the transition. Read the full blog post here and join the conversation on how we can achieve our net zero goals together

A new report from TheCityUK and PwC calls for faster, more decisive action to strengthen the UK’s competitiveness as a global financial centre. Download the report here.

Scottish Financial Enterprise has launched an update to its skills action plan to help prepare the industry for rapid change in the wake of AI. The update comes as rapid advances in emerging technology and a competitive hiring landscape are reshaping the industry and seeks to highlight how best to prepare the workforce for an AI led world.