Banks' Spring Recruitment: How Can They Win Against Tech Giants in the Battle for Tech Talent

Securities Times Reporter Huang Yulin

In March, the “battle for talent” in the financial industry has once again begun.

Recently, six major state-owned banks, including Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, China Construction Bank, and others, along with joint-stock banks like China Merchants Bank, CITIC Bank, Ping An Bank, and city and rural commercial banks such as Bank of Beijing and Zhangjiagang Rural Commercial Bank, have intensively released spring campus recruitment notices, fully opening the talent online application channels.

The Securities Times reporter analyzed the recruitment announcements from various institutions and found that the structure of campus recruitment positions is undergoing a round of adjustment. The most direct change is reflected in the variation of quotas: on one hand, the recruitment efforts and proportion of technology talents are increasing year by year; on the other hand, traditional general positions at counters and branches still exist in certain scale, but their numbers have not significantly increased.

Data from recruitment reflects the phased progress of digital transformation in the banking industry. Industry insiders point out that, against the backdrop of sustained pressure on net interest margins, commercial banks’ technological demands have shifted from basic “business online” to in-depth “business intelligence.” The recruitment focus of each bank is now highly concentrated on cutting-edge fields such as large model applications, intelligent agents, and privacy computing.

Major state-owned banks recruit thousands

According to the Securities Times’ analysis, since mid-March, more than ten banks, including the Big Six state-owned banks—Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Agricultural Bank of China, Bank of China, China Construction Bank, Bank of Communications, and Postal Savings Bank—have released spring 2026 campus recruitment notices. In terms of scale, state-owned banks remain the main force in this spring recruitment round. For example, Bank of China announced nearly 4,000 positions, and China Construction Bank also released about 1,400 positions.

“Banks are an important part of financial services, with numerous branches and diverse positions, making them a preferred choice for many college graduates every year,” said a university teacher in East China to the Securities Times.

Taking Bank of China as an example, in this round of spring recruitment, the bank’s recruitment needs cover departments directly under the head office, domestic branches, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, and overseas institutions, as well as comprehensive management companies. Positions include business marketing at outlets, teller roles, information technology, and intelligent operations.

It is worth noting that many banks actively respond to policies and recruit specialized talents. For example, China Construction Bank launched a “Rural Revitalization” special recruitment, with 14 branches posting over 540 positions; some branches of Industrial and Commercial Bank of China have set up county-specific positions, open to all majors, to attract graduates committed to rural revitalization.

From “general IT” to “hardcore AI”

The Securities Times reporter observed that in the 2026 spring campus recruitment, the demand for technology talents in banks continues to grow. In some banks’ recruitment announcements, technology-related positions even account for “half” of the needs in the head office departments.

The spring campus recruitment announcement of Bank of China shows that almost all departments with talent needs are related to technology, including the Technology Operations Center, Software Center, Remote Banking Center, and others, with positions mainly in information technology.

Ping An Bank has set up a dedicated technology talent session, with its FinTech department creating a campus recruitment training plan centered on a “financial + technology” dual-spiral development system. It offers practical platforms in artificial intelligence, systems engineering, information security, and other fields, with positions in algorithms, data development, and front-end development eager to attract talent.

As the open-source AI ecosystem matures, banks’ requirements for technology talents are becoming more detailed, shifting from “general IT” to “hardcore AI.”

The Remote Banking Center of Bank of China (Beijing) emphasized in its smart operations recruitment that the position requires promoting the intelligent construction and operation of risk control and business, responsible for planning and applying intelligent scenarios, designing smart scenarios, training robots, and building corpora, pushing forward intelligent business operations and system construction; also responsible for maintaining knowledge bases for text and voice robots, requiring proficiency in training tools and data analysis skills to continuously optimize intelligent Q&A performance.

The Shenzhen branch of Bank of Beijing posted a special recruitment notice for FinTech talents, with main responsibilities in software development involving big data and AI development, blockchain and distributed database development, and banking system development.

Technology talents are highly sought after

After years of building FinTech capabilities, the demand for technology talents across banks has gradually diversified.

Wang Pengbo, senior analyst at Broadcom Consulting and head of the financial industry, said: “State-owned banks focus more on system infrastructure, cloud architecture, data security, and compliance, requiring candidates to have solid technical skills and a cautious approach, capable of handling large-scale system construction; joint-stock banks prefer AI implementation, intelligent risk control, retail finance, and other performance-driven scenarios, thus favoring practical talents with both technical and business skills; city and rural commercial banks are more pragmatic, seeking quick learners who can do lightweight development and local scenarios, emphasizing rapid implementation and results.”

Wang Pengbo believes that increasingly detailed job roles indicate that banks are no longer satisfied with simple online transformation but are actively reconstructing business with AI and large models. The technology departments are shifting from cost centers to value centers.

“Currently, the most urgent need in banking is for versatile talents with expertise in ‘Finance + AI + Engineering,’ who understand credit and risk control, can fine-tune large models, develop intelligent agents, and implement projects,” Wang said.

Banks have prioritized recruiting technology talents but also face challenges. The Securities Times reporter noted that while financial institutions are issuing talent recruitment orders, internet giants like Tencent, ByteDance, and Baidu have also launched their 2026 campus spring recruitment, intensifying the competition for tech talents.

“Many bank executives have revealed that it is quite difficult to find truly suitable FinTech talents. Compared to popular internet ‘big factories,’ banks still need to optimize their talent evaluation, diversified compensation incentives, and development and training opportunities,” an industry insider told the Securities Times.

Dong Ximiao, chief economist at UnionPay and deputy director of the Shanghai Financial and Development Laboratory, pointed out that AI applications have not only driven positive changes in business, organization, and cognition in the financial industry but also brought new issues in technology, regulation, and talent. “To make good use of technology and retain talent, the industry needs to foster an open, inclusive, and tolerant innovative culture; promote collaboration in job assessments; and build a healthy talent ecosystem.”

Wang Pengbo added, “Banks don’t need to compete head-to-head with internet ‘big factories’ for top salaries. They can leverage multiple development paths in technology, management, and business, along with long-term benefits like the six insurances and two funds, to create advantages.” He emphasized that to retain talent, it is crucial to bring cutting-edge technology closer to financial scenarios and provide a better work environment and pace that allow talent growth.