The truth about Capital Markets in IBD

OK, so according to everyone, DCM or ECM is the worst product group in IBD. Modeling is minimum, no exit opportunity, bad bonus, little pay, no respect with other IBD peers, etc....

If you are in DCM at a BB, should you aim to try to lateral before your 2 years is up? And how hard is? Will the industry IBD guys put you at the same level as back and middle office?

 

That's bullshit. GCM made a killing last year and pretty much subsidised M&A team.

The reason for the derision by the college kids is that GCM doesn't offer as quantitative/analytical skillset as IBD does. So the exits options are supposedly worse.

You shouldn't go into DCM with such a negative mindset because you might actually like it there. But if you absolutely hate it then you should try to lateral after one year.

__________ Just my 2c.
 
JohnnyCage:
according to this forum DCM is fine but ECM has "ZERO" exit ops. ECM can barely get you into Cornell B-school

Really? I read this forum and people said ECM is much better b/c you do public offering and PE/HF/VC would want to hire you b/c you have this experience.

 

please lets not do the whole capital markets bashing thing again here if you don't think its for you, then don't go but do not go in looking to leave.

 
IlliniProgrammer:
tzn007:
I thought capital markets at IB in general refereed to Sales, Trading & Research operations?? Could someone please explain??
That's what I thought, too- with Origination being a subset of Capital Markets.

Apparently on WSO, "Capital Markets" just means origination.

Capital Markets means ECM, DCM, and LevFin at nearly everybank...in fact I can't think of a bank uses "Capital Markets" for S&T.

Sales and Trading is commonly referred to as S&T, Securities Division, or Global Markets (DB uses this one). Some traders also say they trade for the investment bank...referring to the fact that they are a S&T trader in IB as opposed to a trader in AM or somewhere else.

People in Research never say they are in "Sales, Trading, and Research" and instead always say they are in "Research".....9/10 they make you ask "Research for what?".After they answer, your answer is always "Oh, that's cool...BLAH BLAH BLAH"

As previously stated, do a search for a detailed post on what the day-to-day is like in Capital Markets.

"Greed, in all of its forms; greed for life, for money, for love, for knowledge has marked the upward surge of mankind. And greed, you mark my words, will not only save Teldar Paper, but that other malfunctioning corporation called the USA."
 

Last year? More - loads of people have been sacked at the beginning of the year, so there was more to go round for the survivors when the issuances bounced back.

__________ Just my 2c.
 

OP in answer to your question, banking recruiting teams will have correspondence with the markets recruiting teams but often they run separate processes entirely. I would say that the majority of BBs tend to run a separate process for banking and markets. That being said, they are fundamentally different paths, but if you can only get a job in markets, you still have tons of optionality, upside, and mobility should you choose to leverage it the right way...

 
Best Response

Please, who the hell bases their decision to go to one area over another off of anything people on WSO says. I do hope everyone realizes that the vast majority of people shitting on one thing or another are college freshmen who rather than going out and getting laid are on her trying to make people who actually have job offers feel like shit.

If you have an offer consider yourself lucky. If you go into ECM or DCM then work hard and network. Life isn't completely about PE. Get real. If people from big 4 accounting can get into banking then so can someone from DCM/ECM.

As far as people worrying if they can call themselves investment bankers. I do hope you realize that 99% of people out there think you are a bank teller. Those that know better wont give a shit.

 
AnthonyD1982:
Please, who the hell bases their decision to go to one area over another off of anything people on WSO says. I do hope everyone realizes that the vast majority of people shitting on one thing or another are college freshmen who rather than going out and getting laid are on her trying to make people who actually have job offers feel like shit.

If you have an offer consider yourself lucky. If you go into ECM or DCM then work hard and network. Life isn't completely about PE. Get real. If people from big 4 accounting can get into banking then so can someone from DCM/ECM.

As far as people worrying if they can call themselves investment bankers. I do hope you realize that 99% of people out there think you are a bank teller. Those that know better wont give a shit.

Hahaha, I want to be a teller.

 

Hey Anthony, Can you please provide some insight on my earlier question as I am a bit confused.

I thought capital markets at IB in general refereed to Sales, Trading & Research operations?? Could someone please explain??

 

I worked in capital markets. DCM probably has decent exit opps to fixed income trading/research. Not sure that ECM does for the equity equivalent. Neither is great for exit opps otherwise. I would advise you to choose corporate finance/M&A or other non CM groups unless you feel strongly about CM and want to build a career there. Just my opinion, obviously take this (and all other comments) with a kilogram of salt.

 
darkxfriend:
I worked in capital markets. DCM probably has decent exit opps to fixed income trading/research. Not sure that ECM does for the equity equivalent. Neither is great for exit opps otherwise. I would advise you to choose corporate finance/M&A or other non CM groups unless you feel strongly about CM and want to build a career there. Just my opinion, obviously take this (and all other comments) with a kilogram of salt.

Do CM people get headhunter calls for fixed income trading/research roles? Or do you do your own networking for this? Thanks.

 

Headhunter calls go out to all IBD analysts but the CM analysts are mostly stopped dead in their tracks for most exit ops once they disclose the group they are in. Fixed income trading/research is not that popular of an exit op via headhunters since it's mostly a bank thing anyway, so no reason not to move internally since it's much easier than going through a 3rd party.

This isn't to say you're screwed if you're in CM. Just that it requires you to be unique in a way that I am not aware of, or to be persistent in a way that other IBD analysts don't need to be.

 

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