Pay for IT staff working in hedge funds and asset managers has surged 13% in the last six months as organisations upgrade their systems post-credit crunch, says ReThink Recruitment, a business and technology staffing company.

According to ReThink, software developers with experience in front office trading systems now command £700 per day on average, up from an average of around £620 per day at the start of the year.

One of the key drivers of demand for IT skills in hedge funds and asset managers is the need to strengthen compliance and risk management systems in response to regulatory pressures.

ReThink says that one fund manager it works for aims to increase the size of its IT department by 75% from 20 to 35 by the end of the year.