Best M&A Shops in London (based on comp & progression)?
Hi all, not a super complex question. Just need a simple, broad answer. I have often been getting too much into super niche details of which M&A shop to hone my focus on but to be honest my main goals are:
1) earn a fuck ton of money (strong potential for high bonus where deserved)
2) stay in M&A long-term and become a well-respected senior by the time I'm 30. I am competitive and I want to reach at least Executive/Managing Director before then.
Whether or not I am asking the right questions, I would like to know what everyone's take on this is based on these 2 criteria alone. Yes, WLB, culture, etc. comes into play but to be honest I'm a grinder first and those considerations will come later for me. I also feel like in general I would prefer an EB or a smaller boutique shop as a whole (Qatalyst, CVP, Zaoui & Co, Robey Warshaw) because of the smaller team-size and higher pay-per-head. Of course these shops are incredibly sweaty and competitive but where there is a will there is (hopefully) a way. Thanks all.
MD/respected senior before 30?
Boss, I admire your ambition and drive, but I don't think that is statistically possible to pull off.
There are definitely instances in London where promoted MDs were just over 30. I don’t think it’s far-fetched. One of the partners in my firm made Executive Director at 28 at a BB, which kind of opened my eyes to this reality. By respected senior I don’t mean to be a Partner necessarily, I mean someone who is well trusted to oversee large portion of a big deal. To be honest, I don’t see the issue with this goal. Whether or not it’s realistic is fine to account for but useless in growing any sort of ambition.
Yeah, with politics. Maybe it was possible back then, but I'm going to be 100% real with you. Keep it realistic. Saying which bank you should "Hone" your skills towards is a terrible strategy in this market. 7 times out of 10, you won't get a summer offer at that bank you're drooling over. You have to be ready to spread your eggs in multiple baskets. Recruiting is so cooked that it's a numbers game. Also, if you are a sixth-former or first-year, trust me you will find out what I'm saying when you try to recruit.
Any of the names you mentioned. Cvp is great for career bankers. Seems silly to worry too much about this without offers on the table - cast a wide net, shoot for all of these and more, and choose whichever best fits your criteria (if you are lucky enough to get multiple offers).
Thank you for the response. Agreed on your points as well.
I think you're the type of prospect that will get a tough reality check once (and if) you land somewhere decent..
Moving to NYC seems like the best option. You don’t mind working hard but want to be comped well.
On this side of the Atlantic, I know MS/JPM promote early.
Great points: capital markets are deeper, ambition is rewarded rather than smothered at birth, and there's always the option to lateral back to London.
Your ambition is admirable but you're running a hurdles race and the first hurdle is to get yourself a seat and outperform there. If you are focused on 10 or 15 years down the road and you trip up in your first gig then it'll probably destroy your confidence and send you hurtling towards a different career.
It's great you're thinking long-term but the devil is in the execution: focus on what is in front of you, excel at that, ask your senior for more work, do that well, and gradually move up the greasy pole.
Evercore
Moelis (accelerated promos for top rankers)
Evercore (depends on group)
Rothschild
Those are the top EBs for pay and progression in London in my view.
MS does accelerated promotions but its rare.
Don't worry about how quick you get to MD. Focus on just killing it and that progression will follow naturally.
This is absolutely accurate. Focus on each iterative step in the process. Everyone walks into ibanking thinking they are Gordon Gekko instead of some geeky, over-achieving, 21 year old who has watched Jim Donovan speak 50k times on youtube.
Very few M&A bankers make MD/Partner so young. People get to those levels because of their ability to bring in business, but your ability to do so as an M&A banker is limited because you need to build client relationships and be seen as a safe and experienced pair of hands taking care of the process and transactions for large corporations. Very few people would trust a 28 yr old with 6 years of experience to handle their $5bn merger unless it was an exception.
Most of those at BBs who do get to such levels at a young age were in S&T, because there you might be given the tap to manage significant risk, and your ability to consistently make money for the bank gets you the promotion. You are literally taking bets with money there, vs. selling advice, very different world.
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