There is also something of an age-old debate as to just how successful lawyers are after moving into commercial roles in banks, where the skill sets are traditionally seen as mutually exclusive.

It would seem that the power to challenge this perception always rests with the individual, however.

This section looks at the commercial functions within the industry, and not at the roles of those employed as in-house lawyers.

The financial services industry as a whole is obviously a very wide head, encompassing many different sectors and skillsets.

Some principal sub-divisions are featured adjacent.

UK Finance (formerly The British Bankers Association and others) is the banking and financial services trade association.

Its website (https://www.ukfinance.org.uk/) contains plenty of good and straightforward information and lists qualifications and available e-learning, training and conferences.

There is a job vacancies section also.

www.thebanker.com is a sleek website that accompanies the magazine of the same name, containing news and articles which are not necessarily aimed at the expert.