Reputation of BAML
Honest question, why do most people on this site hate on BAML? I'm thinking about applying IB. Do they have a bad reputation in IB? any help is appreciated.
Honest question, why do most people on this site hate on BAML? I'm thinking about applying IB. Do they have a bad reputation in IB? any help is appreciated.
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Career Resources
its horrible but better than ubs
http://blogs.barrons.com/focusonfunds/2011/04/25/poll-of-managers-apple…
If you ask 10 people you'll get 10 different opinions. Besides, why would anyone care what the prepubescent children on this forum think.
yes, there is a lot of fetus opinion this board. However, BofA, pre-merrill did not have the best rep so you see some of that carrying over. Like everything, a lot of it is group dependent.
If you are thinking that you can afford to be selective with regard to which institutions you apply to, you cant. Any bulge bracket, middle market, or established boutique investment bank that would be willing to extend you an offer is a firm worth considering, and anyone who participates in prestige-whoring is clearly not giving an opinion worth noting. The firm has a solid reputation particularly in their equity and debt financing platforms (Lev Fin crushes it). It may not be as strong a performer in Global M&A up to this point because legacy BofA did not have as strong of a global presence as Merrill did, but they have been moving up the league tables notwithstanding. Goldman, Lazard, MS, and other Elite boutiques garner a stronger market share with respect to M&A, but in terms of volume and fees the firm has substantial deal flow. You could basically say that financings are their bread and butter, with JPM being a major competitor on that front. But definitely don't have an elitist attitude about where you work because you'll get great experience everywhere. Some groups at BAML are better than their counterparts at MS/JPM/GS, while others are not as strong. Regardless, you'll be doing about the same thing wherever you go so be sure to check your attitude at the door.
great info..thanks..yeah, definitely don't want to get picky
thanks for the comments..would anyone care to elaborate a little.
If you get an offer, take it. Pretty chill culture from what I've heard and they pay well. Buddy of mine recently signed S&T there and will make a combined 100k-160k in his first year
That's a huge range and in line with street compensation... they pay the same as all other banks...
Haha. Turtle, how does that make any sense? LOL? What kind of range is that. Your buddy ain't going to pull 80K in bonus 1st year.
Just my gut, but I'm pretty pessimistic about BAML's long-term prospects. A lot of the legacy Merrill people jumped ship and it will undergo a lot of the Citi/Salomon and JPM/Chase drama before everything is sorted out. Pre-Merrill BAC was absolutely atrocious, and even now, it rarely wins lead mandates but is always stuck with the financing... not very exciting prospects in the long run
Eventually the Merrill guys will take over but the problem is just weak brand equity and the "Bank of America" name. A lot of junior analysts I knew took any offer essentially over Bank of America (UBS, BMO, consulting at Monitor, etc) because it's so synonymous with ATM's and whatnot. I know some groups are killing it, but a lot of it about perception.
I wouldn't necessarily say that.... places like UBS and Monitor are just as good as BAML. There's something to be said about perception as well as deal flow. Why do people choose Goldman over places like Lazard?
There is so much inaccuracy in this post that I wouldn't know what to address first. For any of the younger kids on this forum, definitely disregard the above. I have several friends who did their 2 year stint and got gigs at Providence, TPG, Welsh Carson, Cerberus etc... The above interpretation of the firm as a whole and the statement that it cannot win mandates is ludicrous, as it did some landmark M&A deals last year, it simply doesn't have the market share that some of the other shops have.
agree with rufiolove. I personally know one guy from BAML that went to Carlyle as a buyout professional. I doubt people at BMO or Monitor have that kind of opportunity....(if you take BMO over BAML IBD, I can only say you are out of your mind....look at the league tables...BAML is doing fairly well)
People who fear others mistaking the fact that they actually work at an investment bank rather than at the teller booth because the name is synonymous with ATMs seriously need to get their ego checked.
I wonder if anybody put off Citi because its so synonymous with the ATMs. Or any other IB that has a similar name for its commercial banking arm.. Because that's a really damn funny reason to disregard an offer.
Calm down people, no one is saying that you can't make it to a PE shop or w/e from BAML... I prefaced my post with enough "touchy feely" qualifiers to ensure that no one gets too worked up about this. And yes, I do believe having a commercial affiliation hurts the overall brand of the bank--notice how JPMorgan Securities is separate from Chase. Also, whoever picked Carlyle--bad example. They are extremely egalitarian when it comes to hiring junior people.
Anyone know how much an S&T analyst and associate can expect at BAML London in terms of base+bonus?
wtf is monitor. sorry but monitor is horrible. i think u gusy mean mckinsey.
I've wondered the same thing quite a few times while looking through posts. I understand the stigma of saying "Bank of America" in any part of the name when someone asks which investment bank you work at, but 90% of the people I've talked to that work there or have worked there just refer to it as Merrill. I think that they could benefit tremendously by dropping the BofA name off of it because it definitely makes people think of ATMs and tellers.
Baml > ghl/evr/laz in terms of recognition by people outside finance and by product exposure. If you're not dead set on pe or hf there's slot to be said for starting at a blue chip name
Just my 2 cents. College student but that's my perspective
I don't think working at BAML would put you at any disadvantage if you wanted to eventually move into PE or HF. Sure, it doesn't have the notoriety of GS TMT or any of the other major groups that supposedly give PE recruiters crazy pants, but there are about 1,000 other banks and MMs that don't either and somehow someone from those firms will end up at KKR eventually.
What I meant wasn't that BAML was worse for megafunds but rather that it's much more recognized than the boutiques if you decide PE or HF isn't for you. BUT I have never heard of a single person from KKR PE from a firm that wasn't a bulge or top boutique
What I meant wasn't that BAML was worse for megafunds but rather that it's much more recognized than the boutiques if you decide PE or HF isn't for you. BUT I have never heard of a single person from KKR PE from a firm that wasn't a bulge or top boutique
maybe I'm crazy but I'm actually thinking of staying with a company for the long haul, or until i get bored. Dont' think i want to move over to PE or HF
The amount of people who get into IB who intend to stay in it to the MD or even VP level is incredibly low. Out of that group, the percentage of the ones who make it past the associate level is probably in the single digits.
buyside strong side
^ Roasted.
Why the hell did I get monkey shit???
Arguing with ekud is like running in the special olympics, even if you win you're still retarded
Haha if I had SB you'd get the +1.
Thats great!
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