Hiring the right Business Analyst (BA) in financial services isn’t just about finding someone with strong analytical skills or years of experience.

For Australian banks, insurers, wealth management firms and fintech businesses, the right BA needs to understand complex systems, regulatory requirements and business processes while bringing stakeholders together.

But with so many candidates offering similar technical skills, what experience should employers actually prioritise?

1. Financial Services Industry Knowledge

Not all Business Analyst experience translates directly into financial services.

A candidate who understands banking operations, insurance processes, wealth management or financial products can often get up to speed faster than someone completely new to the sector.

Look for experience relevant to your business, including:

• Banking, payments and lending systems
• Insurance and claims processes
• Wealth management and superannuation
• Financial services technology platforms
• Customer onboarding and digital transformation

Hiring tip: Prioritise experience in your specific area of financial services rather than requiring candidates to have worked across every financial sector.

2. Regulatory and Compliance Experience

Financial services organisations operate in highly regulated environments, making regulatory awareness particularly valuable.

Depending on the project, experience with APRA requirements, ASIC obligations, Anti-Money Laundering (AML) processes or operational risk frameworks can be an advantage.

For example, APRA’s CPS 230 operational risk requirements make understanding critical business processes, third-party dependencies and operational resilience especially relevant to certain transformation projects.

However, not every BA needs to be a regulatory specialist. The important question is whether their compliance experience matches the role.

3. Strong Stakeholder Management Skills

Business Analysts often work between technology teams, business leaders, compliance specialists and external providers.

A successful BA needs to communicate clearly, manage competing priorities and translate complex requirements into practical solutions.

When interviewing candidates, look for evidence of:

• Running effective stakeholder workshops
• Managing conflicting business requirements
• Translating technical information into business language
• Building relationships across different departments

Hiring tip: Ask candidates to describe a project where stakeholders disagreed and how they helped reach a workable outcome.

4. Experience Delivering Business and Technology Change

Financial services businesses regularly invest in technology upgrades, process improvements and digital transformation.

A strong Business Analyst should understand how to support change from initial requirements through to implementation.

Relevant experience may include:

• Core banking or platform migrations
• Digital onboarding improvements
• Process mapping and workflow optimisation
• Requirements gathering and documentation
• User acceptance testing (UAT)
• Agile or hybrid project delivery

Look beyond the projects listed on a CV. Ask what the candidate personally delivered and how their contribution improved the outcome.

5. The Right Balance of Technical and Business Skills

Should you hire a technical BA or a business-focused BA?

The answer depends on the project.

A Technical Business Analyst may need experience with APIs, system integrations, data mapping or SQL.

A business-focused BA may bring stronger knowledge of operational processes, regulatory change or customer journeys.

Neither profile is automatically better.

The best hire is someone whose experience matches the problems your organisation needs to solve.

What Should Financial Services Employers Prioritise?

Before starting your recruitment process, consider these questions:

• Does the candidate understand our financial services environment?
• Have they delivered projects similar to ours?
• Can they confidently engage with business and technology stakeholders?
• Do they understand the regulatory requirements relevant to the role?
• Can they demonstrate measurable outcomes from previous projects?

The strongest candidate isn’t necessarily the person with the longest CV. It’s the one with the most relevant experience, strong communication skills and the ability to deliver meaningful business outcomes.

Find the Right Financial Services Business Analyst with SustainRecruit

Hiring Business Analysts for financial services requires more than matching keywords on a CV.

At SustainRecruit Australia, our specialist recruitment team helps businesses find professionals with the right industry knowledge, technical capabilities and stakeholder management skills.

Whether you’re hiring for regulatory change, digital transformation or business process improvement, we can help you identify talent that aligns with your organisation’s needs.

Looking to hire a Business Analyst for your financial services team?

Get in touch with our Australian recruitment specialists at hello@sustainrecruit.com to discuss your hiring needs.