Nomura IBD US

Looks like they've been hiring a lot of senior bankers lately. Thoughts on their banking division in the US? Specifically regarding M&A, FIG, and Consumer/Retail groups.

How are the exit opps and pay (bonuses)?

Thanks in advance.

 

Also interested in their US progress. I can say with confidence they are strong in Australia (especially in consumer, natural resources, industrials and FIG) and because of Abenomics are absolutely killing it in Japan right now. As they are trying to grow steadily in the US, their Japanese success (ie more money lining their pockets) could bode well for their US operations?

 

They had big cuts in the U.S. for both S&T (and I believe for IBD as well) a couple years back. My take is that they're trying to rebuild, and have hired new people in both.

Calm down.
 

Have a very close friend who works for them, can say with authority that cuts were minimal to none in IBD. Not sure about S&T. You're right about them hiring new people, looking to expand aggressively in certain sectors.

 

Exit opps are a bit limited since they're a foreign bank and the scandal hurt them - pay is a weird @ japanese firms since they are very tight w/ budgets and pay and will ask for verification of previous pay structure (bonuses included) before giving you an offer. Basically, they'll try to extract as much utility out of you as possible :)

Calm down.
 

They've hired a few senior bankers, but it's because they've lost a lot several years ago. M&A is probably their strongest and largest group. Can't speak for the consumer / retail group, but I've met some of their FIG bankers and I wasn't too impressed. Small group, low deal flow, etc.

Exit opps obviously depends on the group, but overall the name brand doesn't carry much value in the US. If I had to, I'd bucket them into the "low MM" tier.

 
Best Response

How would a place like Nomura/Macquaire, which are very strong in/near their home markets, but not too strong in the US, be considered when someone has experience with the firms in their home markets and is trying to move to the US? If firms/b-schools in the US were looking at a resume that had work experience at Nomura/Macquarie in their home countries on it, would they recognize that the experience would be stronger than any gained by working at those firms in the US, or would the applicant's experience be thought of as similar to any gained by working at that firm in a US office?

 
notthehospitalER:

How would a place like Nomura/Macquaire, which are very strong in/near their home markets, but not too strong in the US, be considered when someone has experience with the firms in their home markets and is trying to move to the US? If firms/b-schools in the US were looking at a resume that had work experience at Nomura/Macquarie in their home countries on it, would they recognize that the experience would be stronger than any gained by working at those firms in the US, or would the applicant's experience be thought of as similar to any gained by working at that firm in a US office?

Interested in this.

 

Most groups are still pretty small, but their Natural Resources group is quite strong and is doing a decent amount of work. I'd say it takes up nearly a majority of their bankers, I think FIG is one of their other 2-3 strong groups (but I could be wrong about that).

 
xyz12345:
Deal flow at Nomura is not strong, but as mentioned above their FIG group is ok. Would look elsewhere if you have the opportunity - lots of talk of them spinning off US IBD.
I was under the impression that they were going to overstaff as soon as things pick up in an effort to build it up...

Can you tell me more?

Get busy living
 

I have a buddy there, said they hired a lot of talent. They are serious about becoming a big player in the U.S., so it's a good time to get in there. He did say they have to “fight & pitch” for deals. For what position are you interviewing?

 

Hey guys. I have my first round interview for Nomura IBD Internship in London next week. I was wondering if you would be able to share some information on the case study that is used in the first round interview. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks

 
cordy:
Hey guys. I have my first round interview for Nomura IBD Internship in London next week. I was wondering if you would be able to share some information on the case study that is used in the first round interview. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks

The case study is very heavy on technicals so have your knowledge of multiples and DCF very well prepared. Not DCF as much but a major aspect of the case study are the valuation multiples. Know and be prepared to discuss why P/E and EV/Sales and EV/EBITDA and which to use when. They give you like 30 mins to prepare and a big chunk of mostly useless information. Then you spend 30 minutes discussing it with the first interviewer and then there is a second interview which is more fit and technicals. I don't know if the process is different for FT and internship.

Funny thing about the interview was the arrogance of Nomura interviewers. Both of mine were ex-Lehman and they didn't talk of Nomura a lot but more about what they did at Lehman.

 
cordy:
Thanks for that acs_london.

Yes I have been told that I have 2 case study interviews and 1 competency interview.

Do you remember if your case study was on a 'dog grooming business' or on something else?

Actually mine was on the gaming industry. It was about this firm which creates games for smartphones and is looking to grow. Once again, it could be different for FT and internship interviews. I would be prepared for both but I have read some other posts of people getting the dog grooming case study. My interview was in September, I'm guessing they must have changed things since then. Are you interviewing at their City offices or in the Lehman building in Canary Wharf?

 
boutiquebank4life:
Why is it pissing him off? What deals have they been on? Never really see them in the U.S. before.

He mentioned this a while back, so my memory may be a bit hazy, but he said that he disliked the fact that - he had to deal with Japan (he hated the subtleness of Japanese corporate culture) - culture was a lot more bureaucratic +lots of red tape - his salary, along with all of his colleagues, became public domain (everyone had access to everyones wage+benefits data)

 

Nomura Europe is essentially Lehman Europe, it has for the large part remained exactly the same. Any conservatism is likely from the above average conservatism at legacy Lehman.

Nomura U.S. I'm not too sure about, but its essentially a greenfield build-out, so I'd be very surprised if it was heavily influenced by the Japanese or Lehman culture,

 

I interviewed with them for a summer SA ibd in London, but I blew the second round being a clown. First interview was a case study, then a 2 on 1 and a 1 on 1 interview. For the second one I was not serious enough, it was 4 1 on 1 interviews with senior bankers, extremely nice people. The environment was great, many were ex lehman bankers, you can feel the momentum and they are very interesting people. Try to be formal, but also remember to review your fit questions and modeling. In my case it was a shame I did not make it through, I really liked the people there and the environment, but luckily I interviewed recently again for a position I like a lot too and felt a better fit with the people. Good luck!.

Valor is of no service, chance rules all, and the bravest often fall by the hands of cowards. - Tacitus Dr. Nick Riviera: Hey, don't worry. You don't have to make up stories here. Save that for court!
 

BUMP. would like to know about SA for NYC office. What is the conversion rate for FT offers and would this be a good place to work for full time? What are exit opportunities after a 2 year analyst program?

 

Hi, did you recruit for SA stints or for the Off-Cycle?

Kinda late start date, so I was wondering.

Thanks!

P.S. For what it's worth, I think UK M&A is the best choice. Also heard about their Sponsors, NR and CRG being mentioned.

 

Sorry I didn't specify, it's for FT. They've filled some spots from last year's SA class that were converted.

Seems for FT you get a general offer then you're placed via a "match making" process where it's up to you to reach out to members of different groups then give your choices to HR who get feedback from the teams.

Other than UK M&A was thinking NR or TMT. Has anyone heard any good things about FIG?

 
Ukon:
Salary increase for some bankers only, meaning most likely will only affect Directors and MDs. It has nothing to do with analysts and associates. Many US and European banks did that last year too.

Noruma is an ok bank in Europe and Asia after they acquired Lehman, but it is really a 3rd or 4th tier bank in the US.

Did you even read the article?

Tokyo-based Nomura plans to pay 6.5 million yen ($72,000) plus bonuses to some university graduates who join its investment banking, trading, research and legal departments in Japan next April, according to its recruitment Web site. It currently pays a 2.4 million yen starting salary for those posts.

That being said, the people who are keeping the original salaries get paid OT and have other benefits so it's not a true increase of the claimed level.

 

I think Nomura IBD could go either way. They could be a big player in investment banking in the next 5-10 years or then can fizzle and not really go anywhere. Traditionally, building an investment banking business is a very difficult thing to do unless you buy someone. BofA and Macquarie are two places that tried to do that during the boom. Both got some results, but ended up buying someone eventually.

There are only about 30 people in IBD in New York right now. They bought Lehman in Asia and Europe so they're trying to build on that platform in the US. Nomura has a strong balance sheet so it will be a strong player in capital raising. However, I think it will be at least 5 years before they become a contender for big M&A or LBO advisory deals. If you're starting an analyst position you should definite take that into consideration as you might not work on any M&A deals during your analyst career.

 

I think Nomura will go places. They essentially absorbed Lehman and are growing pretty aggressively... so if you are in it for the long run (like lifesucks said, 5+ years) Nomura will be a great place. I think in 5 years at Nomura, you can rise to a level that would take you 8 years to achieve at a BB. Granted I am kind of pulling these numbers out of my ass, but at the same time I've done some research on them and know they are very strong.

Wall Street leaders now understand that they made a mistake, one born of their innocent and trusting nature. They trusted ordinary Americans to behave more responsibly than they themselves ever would, and these ordinary Americans betrayed their trust.
 

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