---
title: "Financial Centre of Frankfurt: Bank employment on the rise - but momentum slowing"
url: https://www.helaba.com/en/financial-centre-frankfurt-bank-employment-rise-momentum-slowing
type: dd_research
language: en
updated: 2026-09-28
keywords: Länder & Regionen, Financial Centre
---

# Financial Centre of Frankfurt: Bank employment on the rise - but momentum slowing

Focus on: Financial Centre of Frankfurt 30 October 2025 © Helaba | Research & Advisory | 30 October 2025 1 of 5 Research & Advisory Bank employment on the rise – but momentum slowing Employment in Germany's banking centre continues to rise thanks to broad-based re- cruitment strategies, but momentum is slowing due to demographic challenges. Partly due to special effects, employment is now at a higher level. By the end of 2026, employ- ment in Frankfurt's banking sector is expected to grow by around 2% to approximately 75,500 employees. To achieve this, it will be necessary to expand the intellectual infra- structure in Frankfurt and recruit more skilled foreign workers. The promotion of the location's attractiveness is being tackled with the Financial Centre Initiative. There is also room for improvement in the database on the German financial centre. Financial employment in other locations such as London is also on an upward trend. Financial employment in Frankfurt and London with different cyclical patterns Despite a shortage of skilled workers and overall economic weakness, employment in Frankfurt's banking towers continues to follow a respectable upward trend. At the end of 2024, the number of employees exceeded 72,000. Based on recently published data from the Federal Employment Agency, we have calculated that around 73,900 bankers were employed in Frankfurt in the first quarter of 2025. Since then, the momentum slowed down, as the year-on-year rates of change show. However, due to a special effect, there was a jump in the time series at the turn of 2024/2025 (+2.5% compared to the previous quarter and +4.5% compared to the previous year). Ulrike Bischoff Senior Economist/ Financial Centre Specialist T 069/91 32-52 56 Frankfurt banking employment continues to trend upwards Bank employees subject to social insurance contributions in the city of Frankfurt % Sources: Federal Employment Agency, Helaba Research & Advisory -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4 5 60.000 62.000 64.000 66.000 68.000 70.000 72.000 74.000 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 yoy (rhs) qoq (rhs) number (lhs) Financial employment in Frankfurt and London with different cyclical patterns ......................... 1 Employment comparison in continental Europe statistically complex ........................................ 3 Banking employment in Frankfurt still rising moderately ........................................................... 4 Focus on: Financial Centre of Frankfurt © Helaba | Research & Advisory | 30 October 2025 2 of 5 This means that employment here is now at a higher level, which also has an impact on our forecast (see Chapter 3). The reason for this special effect may be, for example, reclassifications (such as new additions to the aggre- gate) and incorrect or corrected reports. Apart from that, there were still many new hires, especially in areas such as regulation, digitisation, sustainable finance and money laundering. Another motivation for increasing staffing levels is the demographic challenge of a declining labour force. With its unbroken upward trend in banking employment, Frankfurt has continued to expand in its role as a cen- tral banking centre in Germany and Europe, to which Brexit has also contributed significantly. In view of the years of the declining employment trend in the German banking industry, Frankfurt now accounts for almost 12% of the total (ten years ago: 9%). In spring 2025, there were just under 632,200 bankers subject to social insurance con- tributions in Germany (latest available figures), and it is only since mid-2024 that the number of employees has been rising slightly (most recently +0.1% compared to the previous quarter and +1.9% compared to the previous year). In line with the banking sector, total employment in Frankfurt has also risen noticeably in recent years, with the banking sector's share most recently standing at over 11%. The Frankfurt financial sector as a whole (including insurance and investment companies, fund management etc., known as economic sector K) had over 89,000 employees in the first quarter of 2025. This employment aggregate has developed similarly to that of the banking sector, on which we have always based our forecasts. The defini- tion of sector K does not include the employees of some finance-related institutions that play an important role in Frankfurt (e.g. ECB, ISSB, AMLA) and are a key competitive factor in the global financial centre context.1 When comparing Frankfurt with other European financial centres, it is also important to take into account the dif- fering geographical boundaries: while the employment data for Frankfurt covers the city area, the data for Lon- don refers to a broader aggregate. With an area of around 250 km², the city of Frankfurt covers a smaller area than the London area (Inner London, covering around 330 km², includes the City of London and several immediately adjacent districts).2 Financial employment in London is much more cyclical, although it is also on a fundamental upward trend. Not only did the global financial crisis of 2008 lead to significant consolidation there, but this was also repeated sev- eral times in the following years. This alternated with phases of extensive new hiring. Most recently, a wave of re- dundancies was observed in 2021/2022. Since then, the number of finance jobs has risen again to around 467,500 in the second quarter of 2025. It is estimated that around 50% of these are in the City of London. 1 For information on the importance of finance-related institutions in the German financial centre, see Helaba Focus on Financial Centre of Frankfurt: “Sharpen Frankfurt's Location Profile for Banks & Institutions” from 14 May 2025. 2 Inner London is in turn surrounded by Outer London. Area data from Eurostat were last reported in 2015. Increased concentration in Frankfurt Financial employment in London is more cyclical Index, end of 2008 = 100 Inner London\* City of Frankfurt Sources: Federal Employment Agency, Helaba Research & Advisory \* including the City of London Sources: Federal Employment Agency, Macrobond, Helaba Research & Advisory 86 90 94 98 102 106 110 114 86 90 94 98 102 106 110 114 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2022 2024 Bank employment Frankfurt Bank employment Germany 70.000 74.000 78.000 82.000 86.000 90.000 340.000 360.000 380.000 400.000 420.000 440.000 460.000 480.000 2010 2014 2018 2022 2026 London (lhs) Frankfurt (rhs) Focus on: Financial Centre of Frankfurt © Helaba | Research & Advisory | 30 October 2025 3 of 5 Employment comparison in continental Europe statistically complex In order to compare employment trends in the German financial centre with other continental European loca- tions, Eurostat's regional national accounts are a useful data source. After all, this uniform source allows for better comparability than national statistics with their specific characteristics. The focus here is on financial employ- ment (sector K, see definition in Chapter 1). It would be interesting to analyse a broader definition of the financial centre, including other important players such as asset managers, investment companies, law firms and finance-related institutions. After all, the latter have become increasingly important in the wake of the international regulatory trend. However, such a broad employ- ment aggregate is not available for the German financial centre, and especially not in a comparative analysis of European financial centres. So how does Frankfurt's financial employment compare with the rest of continental Europe? The data available is limited in various respects, which means that its significance is also limited: Eurostat data on financial employ- ment in European cities is only available up to 2023 at best – and not at all for the city of Frankfurt. Alternatively, the regional boundary of the Darmstadt administrative district can be used (Regierungsbezirk Darmstadt), which also exists for other financial centres in Europe. However, this time series for the Darmstadt administrative district is only available until 2022 (latest figure: 135,720 financial employees).3 The fact that no employment data for the city of Frankfurt has been submitted to Eurostat by the German side and that the data is only available for a limited period for the corresponding regional aggregate means there is room for improvement. After all, a good database is essential for the international transparency and marketing of the German financial centre. It would be desirable for the location to publish more key figures in a timely manner. Furthermore, there are discrepancies between the data from Eurostat and from national sources due to differing concepts and definitions. For example, the total employment figures for the city of Frankfurt are reported differ- ently (for 2022, Eurostat reports more than 749,000 versus around 625,000 at the Federal Employment Agency). Taking these statistical peculiarities into account, employment in selected continental European financial centre regions is as follows: In 2022, Frankfurt was ahead of Dublin with almost 136,000 financial employees compared to just under 92,000, while Paris had over 300,000 employees in the financial sector in 2023. However, the different geographical sizes of the areas must also be taken into account. For example, the administrative district of Darm- stadt, at just under 7,500 km², is smaller than Île-de-France, at over 12,000 km². Due to the significant differences in size in terms of both area and employment, it is preferable to look at trends. According to this, employment has 3 The NUTS classification system of the EU allows each member state to be divided into different levels for statistical purposes. For the financial centre, this means NUTS 3 data for the city of Frankfurt and NUTS 2 data for the administrative district of Darmstadt. Employment growth in Frankfurt Financial centre regions: employment comparison Thousand Thousand Sources: Eurostat, Helaba Research & Advisory Sources: Eurostat, Helaba Research & Advisory 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 560 580 600 620 640 660 680 700 720 740 760 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2022 Financial employment (Darmstadt administrative district; rhs) Total employment (City of Frankfurt; lhs) 280 290 300 310 60 70 80 90 100 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2022 Dublin (lhs) Paris (rhs) Focus on: Financial Centre of Frankfurt © Helaba | Research & Advisory | 30 October 2025 4 of 5 increased in all three financial centre regions over the years, with Brexit-related business relocations playing a role. However, the upward trend had already begun before that in the German financial centre. Banking employment in Frankfurt still rising moderately There are several important determinants for employment development in Frankfurt's banking sector: in addition to strategic new hires (e.g. for sustainability or regulatory issues), demographic change is currently having a par- ticularly significant impact, leading to a decline in the labour force. After all, the large baby boomer generation is being followed into working life by much smaller generations. Credit institutions are countering this trend with modified, innovative recruitment strategies aimed specifically at young people, resulting in a gradual rejuvenation of the banking workforce. In addition to attracting young tal- ent, long-standing and older employees with their wealth of experience should also be retained, and a diversified age structure should be maintained. Despite the shortage of skilled workers and economic weakness, broad-based recruitment strategies have so far succeeded in filling a number of positions, although this is becoming increas- ingly difficult. Demographically, this problem is set to increase in the future. It cannot be "digitised away", but it can be mitigated. First and foremost, the digital transformation is increasing the demand for suitably qualified employees and changing tasks and requirements in the banking industry. In addition to corporate headquarters, this also affects branch operations, which are being restructured and streamlined. Ultimately, the implementation of artificial intel- ligence (AI) in standardised processes, for example, frees up more time for more complex activities. The at least partial integration of AI into work processes allows the focus to shift more towards coordinating or checking gen- erated results and coming up with creative ideas, for example. In the medium term, this is expected to lead to effi- ciency gains and some relief on the labour market. At the same time, increased personnel capacities are needed to cope with the increased bureaucratic workload in the institutions. The significantly increased documentation requirements for the institutions are associated with significantly higher costs. In order to increase the labour potential in the banking sector, further expansion of the intellectual infrastruc- ture is needed. Frankfurt should be strengthened as an international centre of education in finance, and an even broader range of qualifications should be created locally. To this end, cooperation between universities and re- search institutions with financial institutions and finance-related institutions would also be beneficial. In times of skilled labour shortages, the immigration of qualified workers is also important, which can be supported by im- proving conditions such as easier recognition of foreign qualifications. With this in mind, it is important to further promote the attractiveness of Frankfurt, which also requires macroe- conomic structural reforms and greater data transparency about the location (e.g. concerning comparative em- ployment development or the number of players). There are a number of levers that can be used to strengthen Frankfurt's competitiveness in the global financial architecture. This is precisely where the strategy of the Financial Centre Initiative, which was launched in late summer, comes in. It aims to put the financial centre in an even better position for the future with a range of measures.4 Numerous important financial centre players, including Helaba, are involved in the Financial Centre Initiative, which started at the end of 2024 under the leadership of the Minister President of Hesse and, through its concerted efforts, can achieve a great deal for the location. The financial centre strategy aims to consolidate and expand Frankfurt's im- portant role in the European financial system. What does this mean for the outlook for banking employment? In our forecast period until the end of 2026, a mod- erate increase in employment is foreseeable in the German banking centre – but with diminishing momentum 4 Strategy paper for Frankfurt as a financial centre adopted | hessen.de from 25 September 2025 Focus on: Financial Centre of Frankfurt © Helaba | Research & Advisory | 30 October 2025 5 of 5 due to demographic developments. In addition, any restructuring in the German banking industry could have an impact. Furthermore, from a regulatory perspective, a certain job effect on the EU banking market is foreseeable, from which Frankfurt in particular, as a central banking location, should benefit. Finally, third-country banks will have to strategically reposition their presence in the European Economic Area from the beginning of 2026 onwards. This is a result of the EU Capital Re- quirements Directive CRD VI, which is likely to lead to shifts in assets and jobs. This offers the German banking centre an op- portunity to further expand its international importance. Based on the now higher start- ing point, an increase of around 2% to approximately 75,500 bank employees in Frankfurt is expected by the end of 2026 (a net gain of around 1,600 new jobs). This overall positive out- look is contingent on continued commitment to the German fi- nancial centre, both through successful recruitment of its players and through concerted efforts to strengthen the location's attractiveness. Publisher and editorial team Helaba Research & Advisory Editor: Simon Azarbayjani Publisher: Dr. Gertrud Rosa Traud Chief Economist/ Head of Research & Advisory Neue Mainzer Str. 52-58 60311 Frankfurt am Main T +49 69 / 91 32 – 20 24 Internet: www.helaba.com Disclaimer This publication was very carefully re- searched and prepared. However, it con- tains analyses and forecasts regarding cur- rent and future market conditions that are for informational purposes only. The data are based on sources that we consider relia- ble, though we cannot assume any respon- sibility for the sources being accurate, com- plete, and up to date. All statements in this publication are for informational purposes. They must not be taken as an offer or rec- ommendation for investment decision. Sign up for our newsletter here: https://news.helaba.de/ research/ Employment growth with slightly slowing momentum Bank employees subject to social insurance contributions in the city of Frankfurt \* \* Latest available figure for the first quarter of 2025: 73,908 bank employees Sources: Federal Employment Agency, Helaba Research & Advisory 60.000 64.000 68.000 72.000 76.000 60.000 64.000 68.000 72.000 76.000 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 Helaba forecast

The number of bank employees in the Main metropolis is rising moderately. Financial employment in Frankfurt and London with different cyclical patterns. Location attractiveness crucial for recruiting foreign skilled workers.