Interestingly Benjamin Graham, Warren Buffett's mentor had a similar problem, he was Jewish and none of the firms on Wall Street would hire a Jew, so he had to start his own firm.
[he] took a job as a chalker on Wall Street with Newburger, Henderson and Loeb. Before long, his natural intelligence won out when he began doing financial research for the firm and he became a partner in the firm. He was soon earning over $500,000 a year, a huge sum; not bad for a 25 year old
Fyi, Jews have been prominent in finance since Joseph, at least.
The 'early life' segment from the wikipedia article about Benjamin Graham:
"Benjamin Graham was born Benjamin Grossbaum in London, England[1] to Jewish parents.[2] He moved to New York City with his family when he was one year old. After the death of his father and experiencing poverty, he became a good student, graduating from Columbia, as salutatorian of his class, at the age of 20. He received an invitation for employment as an instructor in English, Mathematics, and Philosophy, but took a job on Wall Street eventually starting the Graham-Newman Partnership."
