1# International Women’s Day – Why working in Markets is great, meet Malin

By Malin Carlsson

I started in Nordea 2009 after graduating high school. Since then, I have been in various positions within Nordea, and also had some years off for studies. Two years ago, I made my way to the Nordea Markets trading floor. My journey here (so far), shows one of the perks of working in a large bank like Nordea; There’s a wide range of career opportunities, since there are so many different areas within the bank.

For me, working within Nordea Markets is working in a high paced environment with a lot of action since you’re at the front row of what’s happening in the market. The dynamic atmosphere and the buzz are things I really enjoy about my job.

Another thing that makes me thrive, is working together with all the competent and enthusiastic colleagues who challenge you in a good way, not to mention the close interaction with customers.

Full support and a lot of fun

In our team, we have a culture where we support each other, which for me is crucial to be able to succeed. And last but not least we have a lot of fun!

Looking closer at my team, from a diversity angle, we’re half-and-half with four women out of eight. So, I would say we have a very good gender balance. Overall in the trading floor, there are more men than women so I believe it’s still important to attract more women to Markets and banking in general.

My belief is that if/when we have a good mix between gender, ages and backgrounds, it’s easier to attract an even more diversified group of people going forward – which is important for our business, our customers, the society.

Focus on improving diversity and attracting more women

I’m sometimes asked why there aren’t more females in Markets, LC&I and the industry in general!

I don’t have a clear-cut answer, but I think prejudices of the “old culture” still affects the general view of how it is to work at a trading floor. The overall perception could be that it’s mostly men and there’s a certain male-dominated jargon going on, but that’s not the case. I would say it is a misconception that it’s a so-called “man’s world” (in a negative sense). If you ask me, it’s great place to work.

Things are changing, and there’s focus on diversity and gender equality. In order to change the biased perceptions of the working environment, I think it’s important to show especially younger women that there actually are women working here – and enjoying it full on. Hopefully, us sharing our career journeys and experiences, can have some kind of impact and help attract and retain a more diversified group of people.

My impression is that Nordea Markets is working on having more female talents joining us. But it takes time to change something that has been in a certain way for a long time. We still have work to do*.

A piece of advice?

My advice, to both women and men, is to believe in yourself, reach out and learn from others. There are so many competent people here, and within finance, who are open and willing to support and inspire you. Lastly, working in a market environment like this is very fun, rewarding and developing. I can highly recommend it – give it a go, come join us.

Stay tuned to read the upcoming blog by one of my fellow female colleagues at Nordea Markets.

/ Malin