19 Comments
 

My friend's parents asked the same question when he got an offer. Although, hes an international student so they had an excuse.

 
Best Response

I hope it's not a joke because you certainly don't need to know German at Credit Suisse or UBS. You don't need to know how to speak English with a British accept at Rothschild, Barclays Capital, RBS, or HSBC. (Is Lazard British??? somebody confirm).

DB's investment banking position in the US just functions like the Goldmans the Morgans and the Lehmans. It is seentially DB USA Inc.

I mean if you are working in Germany you might need to know German.

The word I know is working in Japan knowing Japanese is almost a must. Working in Singapore/HK knowing Chinese is a plus but there are plenty of people who can't speak a word of Mandarin.

 

Nah, but you need to have been in a frat, and have a thousand meaningless ECs, to work at Douche (pronounced doosh-uh) Bank.

Hope this helps.

 

But even there (in IB) they speak English in all their meetings, so maybe not. In fact someone told me there are a couple of Americans working in IB Frankfurt who can't speak German.

 

Suckermc, it's true that there are i-bankers working in Frankfurt, Germany who can't speak the language. However, they're finding it pretty hard to integrate. It's easier if you're some senior guy, but if you're a monkey, it can be pretty tough... Depends on the proverbial "culture", though...

 

Strictly speaking, no. You don't need to be able to speak German. I know several people at their London office who don't speak it.

However, being able to speak German will give you an edge, particularly if you are interested in their Europrean and German operations.

A lot of the big IBs and other prominant firms (e.g. PE firms) in Europe like to see candidates who are able to speak another modern European language.

 

Iusto alias at voluptatem est velit. Et vel voluptas possimus et. Non sint sint impedit et.

Id et ut reprehenderit qui impedit molestiae. A et voluptatum ipsa labore doloremque dignissimos. Commodi commodi mollitia unde et. Ea rerum laboriosam provident sed qui et sed occaecati.

Illum qui omnis officiis esse. Consequatur nam ea dolorum explicabo et enim. Quia omnis minus rerum sint unde. Sit aut laudantium quam consequatur eveniet tempore et. Autem quo velit in. A numquam nemo modi repellendus odio perspiciatis vel.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.3%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.7%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.3%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • Goldman Sachs 02 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (44) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (79) $150
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”