Over a third of new IT job vacancies are being created in investment banks, according to new research.

The research, from IT recruiter ReThink Recruitment, shows that 36% of new IT job vacancies in the financial services sector are for positions in investment banks.

However, IT job vacancies being created in investment banks have shrunk by over a third in the past year (-39%), from roughly 11,800 in the last quarter of 2007 to 7,200 in Q4 2008, while the number of IT vacancies across the finance sector has fallen by 47% from 32,256 in Q4 2007 to 17,191 in Q4 2008, according to the research.

Michael Bennett, director at ReThink Recruitment, says: “Even as investment banks are reducing their overall IT headcount they still have to recruit IT staff to fill other gaps elsewhere. Many of the IT skills in investment banks are so highly specialised that you can’t just shift staff from one job to another.”