Currently working at a small investment bank in Sweden at their CB division, focused on Real Estate. I have read a couple of threads regarding the difficulty of moving from CB into PC and it seems to be a lot of different views on how difficult it is.
I am currently the only analyst/associate at the division which means that I am involved in every step of the process; from sourcing, to underwriting and structuring, to the final contract negotiation. However, as everyone else is basically a partner, the deals are mainly evaluated on their gut-feeling/experience (which has turned out great since we have no losses in 10 years). Models etc. are only used for the credit committee which means that my technical skills are not horrible, but probably inferior to your typical 2nd year IB-analyst. The division is extremely respected in the Swedish Real Estate space, but probably unheard of outside our niche/Sweden.
Has anyone come from, or heard of anyone that has a similarly unorthodox background who made it to PC (London/NYC) directly. Or would I need a couple of IB/Levfin years abroad first?
yeah, I've seen several people move from much worse positions
Similar position here. Starting stint in a very small direct lending and mezzanine financing boutique.
I feel like all around Europe PE is becoming more accessible without IB experience, the same could happen with PC as it gains popularity these days, not sure.
Why do you think that is the case?
Met a guy who went internally (directly) from Ops to PC. You can definitely make it happen.
As a Swede working in Private Credit in London, I agree with the above commenters, you should have a good shot at moving to PC from your current role. However, if you don't want to stay in Sweden and instead move to London/NYC you would have a better shot by moving to a larger IB (or fund, but more difficult) in London first.
In terms of skills, as long as you have a good understanding of credit analysis, or more fundamentally how to think about different business models, any gap in skills will be filled quickly on the job.
Also worth mentioning that moving to RE-focused credit shop could be an easier move given it is slghtly niche and you have solid experience already.
Happy to discuss further.
First of all, thank you for a good point of view.
How did you get to London from Sweden? Was it a difficult process?
Do you know what the recruiting looks like? Is the best idea to try to reach out to different recruiters or just to apply to a lot of different positions listed online?
Best regards,
Master's degree at target school abroad, then IB in London before moving to buyside. I think reaching out to recruiters wouldn't hurt, and combining that with networking with people at funds you're interested in could be a good start. Applying online is generally difficult, but doesn't hurt either.
Extremely difficult, but not impossible.
If you want LDN you need to first lateral to a bank or another top buy-side firm, assuming you want to work at a prestigious firm. I think it will be very difficult to lateral to LDN directly as competition is harder.
If I was you, I would try and network with Nordic players instead. I would recommend for instance Ture Invest, believe they are one of the most active players in the Nordics and currently expanding.
Let me know if you have any questions.
Thank you for a good comment!
If I were to lateral into LDN IB to begin with, when do you think that I should move (assuming that I would be applying for AN1 then)? After my third year in Sweden or as soon as possible? Furthermore, would it be better to target a smaller shop, potentially real estate focused from the get go? I assume that my chances for BB is quite limited due to competition?
We have been working with a few of the Nordic REPEs and Nordic DCM divisions, so that could probably be a possible move. How much different is a lateral from REPE/IB in Stockholm to LDN (assuming 1st year associate)?
Sorry for spamming questions,
Best
You should lateral as fast as you can, as your move to PC will be quicker.
However, I know what bank you are at, not hard to guess if you are from the Nordics, and I think it will be very hard to move to a BB. Although I should mention that I have seen people move from more reputable shops in the Nordics like Pareto to LevFin BB, but this is a very very rare case.
DCM won't help you go into REPE unfortunately, the skillset is very different. Moving from Stockholm to London imo is very difficult, even if you were at a BB in Stockholm.
Would you consider doing a MSc? Also just so you know, PC is the same bs as any finance job.
I definitely had an unorthodox route into PC. I had 1 year of experience in a consulting "firm" (2 guys that helped small businesses). Fit in really well with a small fund (50mm at time of joining) and they hired me. Very interesting situation to be in. While we are still small (around 200mm now) our JV partner is pushing us to spend more so they can keep funding us.
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