Working in the finance industry can provide you with a lucrative career. Whether you just earned a degree in banking, accounting, economics or statistics or are a mid-level professional looking to make a switch to a finance-focused career, there are several financial jobs available that pay well. In this article, we review 12 high-paying jobs available in finance you might consider, along with their average salaries and primary duties.
12 high-paying jobs in finance
Here are 12 opportunities in finance that pay well, with job descriptions for each. For the most up-to-date salary information from Indeed, click on each salary link below:
1. Accountant
National average salary:$59,606 per yearPrimary duties: An accountant manages the flow of money within an organization. They are responsible for verifying all financial transactions and ensuring that they meet legal requirements. They maintain the payroll, prepare expense budgets and arrange profit and loss statements. Other primary duties include resolving any accounting discrepancies and balancing the books. Accountants are also responsible for preparing and filing an organization’s tax returns.
2. Credit analyst
National average salary:$65,154 per yearPrimary duties: A credit analyst assesses a loan applicant’s creditworthiness. They are responsible for reviewing the applicant’s financial information such as income, spending habits, previous repayment history and more. Using this data, the credit analyst recommends whether their credit request should be granted or not. Credit analysts typically work in banks, credit card companies and investment institutions and act on new credit requests or credit extensions.
3. Investment banker
National average salary:$78,664 per yearPrimary duties: An investment banker provides advice to institutions on the appropriate means of getting capital funding for their business. They help to find buyers and investors for stocks, bonds and other financial instruments. Investment bankers are responsible for handling Initial Public Offerings and ensuring they meet the legal requirements set by the regulatory bodies. In addition, investment bankers deal with mergers and acquisitions, producing company valuations and determining the most favorable approach for their clients to make an offer.
4. Auditor
National average salary:$91,866 per yearPrimary duties: An auditor prepares and goes over financial records to ensure that they are accurate and meet certain regulations. Their primary duties include maintaining financial records, calculating and preparing taxes and assessing the company’s financial operations and making recommendations to management based on their findings. Auditors may sometimes work as consultants. This role is quite similar to that of an accountant , and the two professionals often collaborate.
5. Financial analyst
National average salary:$73,812 per yearPrimary duties: Financial analysts evaluate financial data and provide investment recommendations based on that to their clients. In an organization, they are responsible for assessing economic trends and advising management on their business decisions. In addition, financial analysts can provide useful insight during mergers and acquisitions by assessing a company’s financial statements to determine its value. They may work in a wide range of businesses including banks, insurance companies and securities firms, or they might function as external consultants.
6. Insurance broker
National average salary:$81,208 per yearPrimary duties: An insurance broker provides insurance advice to individuals or corporate organizations. They are responsible for helping their clients determine their risk and explaining how to protect themselves through insurance packages. In addition, they help to purchase insurance plans. Sometimes, brokers act on behalf of insurance companies. Insurance brokers are also involved in finding other ways for their clients to mitigate risk.
7. Cost estimator
National average salary:$82,321 per yearPrimary duties: A cost estimator collects data about the resources required to complete a project and uses this information to estimate the cost of the project. Their primary duties include analyzing documents to understand the scope of the project, preparing estimates and presenting them to management, managing bids from vendors and recording actual costs. Cost estimators also make recommendations on how a business can reduce its costs, thereby increasing revenue and maximizing profits.
8. Financial planning analyst
National average salary:$85,688 per yearPrimary duties: A financial planning analyst evaluates financial information to assist with management’s planning for the business year. They are responsible for forecasting potential outcomes, carrying out asset valuations, recommending financial action based on company goals and current financial standing and preparing financial reports. This differs slightly from a financial analyst, who assesses data to solely make investment recommendations.
9. Trader
National average salary:$92,687 per yearPrimary duties: A trader buys and sells stocks, commodities, bonds, foreign exchange and other financial instruments. Their primary duties include analyzing financial data such as price patterns, trends and market reactions to find profitable trading opportunities, finalizing trades and keeping financial records of all transactions. A trader may be self-employed, work in a financial institution to make trades on behalf of the institution or its clients or act as an intermediary between an individual and another trader.
10. Risk manager
National average salary:$105,930 per yearPrimary duties: A risk manager identifies, measures and evaluates potential risks for an organization. To do this, they examine business plans, contracts and the company’s previous risk response. Risk managers determine how much these risks could impact an organization and create a risk management strategy to minimize, transfer or completely eliminate the risk. Risk managers are also concerned with creating continuity plans to help businesses limit their risks in the future.
11. Actuary
National average salary:$120,164 per yearPrimary duties: An actuary determines the likelihood of a certain risk occurring and the financial consequences of that risk. They use this data to determine insurance rates and premiums. Actuaries work with insurance companies, with their main responsibilities including analyzing past dates to find trends and determine the probability of an occurrence, determining how much the insurance company needs to invest to cover a claim in the future and finding ways to minimize uncertainty. Actuaries need an excellent understanding of mathematics and statistics.
12. Private equity associate
National average salary:$110,561 per yearPrimary duties: A private equity associate works in an investment bank and sources potential investors for the business. In addition, they run due diligence checks and provide support to the bank’s investment services. The private equity associate will be responsible for coming up with new ideas for business deals, conducting market research on potential acquisitions, building valuation models and reviewing financial reports and forecasts.
