'Silicon Alley' giving Wall Street a run for its money in job creation

While the finance sector has long been depended upon to support job creation and economic growth in New York, so-called "Silicon Alley" is giving Wall Street a run for its money. 

According to recent findings from the New York Federal Reserve, Silicon Alley - the name given to the booming tech industry in New York City - added more jobs in the state than the finance sector, New York Business Journal reported. 

Specifically, jobs in internet publishing, online shopping and scientific research and development are showing significant growth, according to a statement by William Dudley, president and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

"Growth in these high-paying jobs is picking up much of the slack created by the softness of the securities industry," Dudley said. 

Silicon Alley is also increasingly being seen as a vibrant hub for startups. For three out of four quarters of 2015, New York City had more startup funding requests than any other area in the U.S., noted Forbes. In the final quarter of the year, the city registered 20 percent of all startup funding applications in the country. 

And even the tech industry in the Big Apple is taking finance jobs from Wall Street, thanks to fintech. New York state saw the most fintech funding in the country in the first quarter of 2016, and had deals equal to $201.4 billion, according to New York Business Journal. 

As Silicon Alley grows, state leadership will need to reassess Wall Street. The economy of New York City has traditionally been fueled mostly by the finance sector, Liberty Street Economics explained, and in 2007 was responsible for 12 percent of total employment in the city and 25 percent of wage and salary earnings. 

Dudley stated that there were multiple theories as to why the finance sector in the city is seeing minimal job gains, including unsustainable practices prior to the financial crisis, CNBC reported. 

The Trevi Group
www.TheTreviGroup.com