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I haven't seen anything. We should all start complaining about our hours, get a couple articles out there, then maybe we'll get the same treatment.
Trust me, I've complained several times to upper management and more loudly to my fellow junior analysts. Mgmt said it was being considered in June. Still holding out hope for a larger than usual raise come bonus time, but I'm beginning to lose hope.
What type of bank are you at? BB, MM, boutique?
Be glad there aren't salary reductions or layoffs.
Why? Record profits in markets, IB, and credit losses best they've been in 20+ years. Why should I be happy there aren't salary reductions when business is better than ever?
Bro his name is literally losingalpha
Sure, but here is how a bank's senior executive views equity research:
Revenue: $0
Cost: salary + bonus + other opex
Profit: negative of (salary + bonus + other opex)
Hence, be glad they are reducing salary / laying off, or forcing the same headcount to cover more stocks, or shutting down the department altogether.
Because ER is not markets or IB. It’s a cost center like the India office that fixes your iPhone when it’s got a glitch. It will be automated soon.
Heard jpm increased research guys to 100k. That’s a start at least.
Yup, JPM bump'd all FO workers. Waiting for all the other BB's to join suit or may start looking at JPM job openings lol
I work there and wasn't aware of this.. source?
bump
Equity research is considered like credit, the red headed step child. Your base adjustments will always lag IB and your bonuses will never catch up.Think about it this way, IB brings in revenue and many times that success is incumbent on the relationships the bankers have with clients.Equity research is something anyone can do, you don't need a relationship with companies. And you don't bring in any revenue. Similar story to credit, which is probably even more useless considering every bank I've worked at never turns down a deal lol.
EDIT: man the research guys don’t like the cold hard truth lol.
You have no idea what you are talking about lmao
Lol yes. Equity research and credit are on par with IB in terms of prestige, pay and talent. Sigh.
Yikes. Clearly you know literally nothing about ER whatsoever as the other poster said. I’m not even on the sell side anymore yet I feel compelled to defend it from rampant misinformation like this.
Yeah, pay is lower than IB, but it’s still pretty damn high for a young professional and you don’t get treated like a slave (which is the impression I get from IB) AND the work is actually interesting / challenging even at the most junior levels. If we were expected to work 80-100 hrs a week, the pay gap would be narrower. Why would banks keep supporting and investing in their research franchises if they added no value, served no purpose, or could be replaced by ‘anybody’ cheaper? Think about that…banks try to maximize profit like any other company.
Relationships (with the companies, investors & KOLs) are also absolutely critical if you’re on a good team as well. Also, research does generate revenue, both directly (fees) and indirectly (trading), albeit less than IB and at lower margins. The reason this still works is because research also generates synergies with other business units like IB, wealth management, trading, etc. that help those business make more money. Note that not every bank does this the same way so I am generalizing to an extent.
I know I come off as harsh sometimes, but it’s a forum not a dinner party so why try to be polite instead of telling the harsh truth.
Equity research is where people who couldn’t get into banking go or people who want to eventually move into banking but can’t get in at first.
Equity research is like a nice to have, there is a reason the pay sucks. Is it a good job compared to regular jobs? Sure, but we are talking about elite places on this forum. Don’t try to justify the low pay, just be honest man.
The OP asked my ER pay is lagging. It’s cause you don’t pay the second tier people, that’s why.
It’s like saying duke isn’t that good a school. It’s better than most, but it’s no Ivy League. Keep it real man.
Agree to disagree, but your comments come off extremely insecure rather than harsh. It’s one thing to point out differences in function and another thing to get into a dick measuring contest about prestige and tiers when nobody asked. I hope you don’t tie your entire life’s self-worth on things like this, but then again it’s WSO, so can’t expect much. Cheers.
I'm keeping it real in case a young person reads this and is considering research vs banking and thinks research isn't that bad after reading this. I don't understand what I am saying that is so controversial. The OP asked my ER isn't getting bumps and I said because its not a very vital function. I don't understand how that rankles people. The banks or any company pays the jobs it values the most. That's why surgeons are typically paid more than general practitioners right? IB is paid better than ER because the job is tougher and requires more talent. The pay reflects this.
I had a short stint in credit, and I am telling you the people I worked with were not as bright or motivated. Hence, the lower pay. Also, there is a plethora of equity research reports out there, plus rating agency reports, etc so the work literally is fungible.
Again, all I said was ER bases lag because its not a sexy or high powered sector in a bank. I don't understand how this bothers so many people.
Thanks for elaborating on your stance. I don’t think anyone would disagree with you in saying IB generates more direct revenue than ER. That said, it’s another thing to make a blanket statement that people in ER aren’t as “talented” as those in IB and can be easily replaced - I think it’s this mindset that irks most people here. I fundamentally disagree with you on this point, and think it’s terribly misleading for you to say that with the amount of young people coming here for career advice. I really don’t see how an IB associate is any less replaceable than an ER associate, since most of junior IB work is just modelling/ppt. Top ER analysts also have better industry knowledge than IB MDs, and I’ve seen them shift to senior IB roles easily.
Personally, I chose ER because I find it more intellectually stimulating, and have plenty of friends in IB BB/buy-side. I don’t see a difference in talent or intelligence, and my exit ops look just as cheery. Again, the caveat is to pick a ‘hot’ sector rather than a dying one, and work for a good analyst.
And to your analogy, just because someone is a surgeon doesn’t mean they are more talented than general practitioners - most of the times it’s a personal choice. I think I can say with confidence because I’m one of those ex-medical professionals who went into finance.
Dont think anyone here cares or is hurt from your “harsh tone”. Your characterization of the job is just wholly incorrect and definitely shows you have some insecurities. Most people going to research likely arent considering IB anyways, and most exits from research are directly to the buyside or staying within research - Not IB.
Look, if you have the need to feel superior to others, dont know why you havent exited to a position that provides way more interesting work and skin in the game - then you could look down on bankers too. Sellsiders might not be value adds, but bankers seldom are either - much more show than substance.
Then how do you explain bankers that move to research? Ones that got into banking by mistake?
I would never do banking at a junior level regardless of pay or what you view as "prestige". You do realize how mind numbing the job is? I think you fail to realize that you're not getting paid because of your expertise but b/c you're willing to be sb bitch.
I don't know anyone in ER who's there because they didn't make IB or want to move to IB
I say this is more sector dependent. If we’re using pay as a benchmark on value add, just look at how much biotech/HC analysts are getting paid.
For the record, as an associate, I’m getting the same base as IB associates at my bank, but that’s because of the sector I’m in and related experiences. To each their own.
BofA just announced raises for research.
BofA raises for S&T and research according to sources.
Wells Fargo raise included the research folks as well.
Stifel gave some increases.
Most confirmed no increases on the ER side per sources.
Goldman and JPM aswell
Love to see it. Hopefully some of the small shops/boutiques follow suit (though not necessarily likely, no idea what theyre thinking rn)
A little delayed on my end, but did you hear what the raises were at Stifel? Wondering as I have not heard anything on this.
The number of people saying ER brings in no revenue just shows how little people actually know about ER. Basically every ER dept in a major US bank brings in revenue under MiFID-II lol. And in the sell-side, ER also gets paid by IB for every IPO ER is staffed on.
ER can't be paid with banking revenue so I'm not sure what you're talking about here. It's a cost center for most banks and most banks are letting that group go.
lol which banks are giving it up, name one.
While ER compensation cannot be tied to specific deals, analyst bonuses can be based on ‘broad value add to firm’ which includes involvement in deals. This is how they get paid for being tied to deals without stating it explicitly, and is one of the reasons sectors like biotech get paid more (ie lots of deal activity to support them). At many banks, ER does play an important role to the overall service to corporate clients (including simply providing coverage for the issuer, which is important).
Not sure what is with the vendetta against ER from some users on here who know nothing about it, but it’s very strange.
On an income statement, the ER segment would definitely look like a net cost. But the coverage ER provides to companies that do deals with the bank can be a big deciding factor for those companies, driving some IB revenue indirectly. ER also drives market activity with new information, views, and buy/sell calls, and this can trickle into S&T activity for the bank. At some banks, subscription fees actually cover the cost of the entire research department. Moreover, I think you'll see bank customers expecting high quality research and investment ideas as IBs begin to manage more money and deal flow continues, so I think the outlook for the sector is favorable.
Take your beady little er eyes and shut the fuck up
///
The only reason that ER will lag IB is because you work less hours.
Until you reach the MD/VP levels (which 1% of analysts do anyway in IB or ER), you could say both are a cost center. I don’t know how you could disagree on the fact that MDs in ER add value. Most of them are on CNBC all the time, constantly interacting with buyside clients, and providing valuable research to bankers for their firm’s own deals.
The only difference is that junior IB analysts work 40% more so their bonus will account for that. People have been saying for the past 20 years that ER will fade away - yet all the automation and S&T job cuts we haven’t seen any major bank cut ER (Nomura doesn’t count since they just acquired Wolfe and dropped their own brand — offsets).
For what it’s worth, my salary in ER as a junior analyst is the EXACT same as IB.
What about total comp?
Bullshit. Comp for juniors in ER should never be equal to revenue generating groups like IB. It's more believable if you're a few years into ER and comparing yourself to a 1st year analyst in IB
They will just downvote your post, its really odd the ER people are getting offended if you say IB pays more. It would be akin to IB people crying if you say PE pays more lol.
LOL so wrong....I've been in the market recently and have received senior associate offers (e.g., 3-6 YOE) for II ranked ER teams in hot sectors (e.g., TMT) that promised a range of ~$250-350K all in. This is contingent on a ~55-65 hour work week on avg., so the per hour compensation is roughly comparable to what IB associates make after doing 80+ hour weeks
Lol Number monkey second year analyst at IB got mad cuz only thing he does is model and get treated like shit. Zero client interaction. Just aligning stupid decks and plugging small numbers into your model doesn't generate revenue for the bank.
Most ER associates gets client interaction from year 1 and gets significantly deep fundamental understanding of the sector.
US BB in London raising A1 from 50k to 60k... would that mean lower bonus?
Which one?
Comp definitely going up across the board at most firms (not by any amount worth crying over at the junior level) that aren't already doomed. But a word of wisdom to those seeing the golden goose (ridiculous bids from competing firms) being dangled in front of them - make sure you choose the right ship to jump to... it's almost inevitable that this boom period in comp/hiring is temporary and will result in headcount/bonus cuts in a a couple of years at a significant number of shops once the pipeline dries up.
MS has now joined GS in raising research to 110k, BAML/JPM still raised to 100k.
Salaries are now at this level for all junior hires in ER?
yes
At JPM praying they raise...
Correct me if I am wrong, but isn't BoA raising to $100k only a rumor so far? I know there was news on it but nothing official
It's only for FO folks.
Confirmed and across the globe
First year at JPM research and still have not heard about a raise... base still at 85k... are we getting the raise or nah?
Why would you get one?
At MM shop where both ER and IB got a raise
Apparently new hires got a bump here (and a rather significant one at that), but current employees haven't got dick
any insight on what they're bumped to? 100/110k? fwiw my boutique hasnt raised for ER, but did for banking smh
My MM raised for 2nd year associates. 1st year -> 2nd year = $85K -> $125K
They’ve raised them at BofA to a base of 100k.
Source: SA
Do you know comps of associates (with 3-5 years of experience), or can share the source link? Thanks.
I don’t know the compensation for associates with 3-5 years of experience, but my source is that I got an email from BAML stating that they have increased base salaries from 85k to 100k for ER and that I needed to sign an updated form for my upcoming summer analyst internship.
my lead analyst said it depends heavily on the sector (at least at my bank -- BB). In healthcare my analyst said an associate with 18 months experience "was getting paid something starting with a 2" and an associate with "3 years experience was getting paid something with a 3 in front of it." Not sure about other sectors, but thats healthcare.
And at the same time IB is now $110....
-
Can mirror this... ER Analyst 2 at a BB (GS/JPM/MS) in Asia with ~USD150k base
Nice post
Barclays 115k base now, started in aug 2021, Year above base 125k.
How come every other post and personal sources in IB are saying 110/115? Is this exclusively research? Why are they getting a higher base than banking?
Still nothing from UBS.... junior morale seriously at all time low
Following up on this, I seriously don't know of anyone at UBS not currently looking to jump. Meanwhile, management keeps pretending the rest of the street didn't see massive comp raises. Plenty of good analysts at UBS to launch your career with, and absolutely no reasons to stay with the firm.
UBS didn’t up Analyst/Associate pay?
London MM banks bumped base for first year equity research associates/analysts to 60-65k GBP with 50-70% bonus (tech and healthcare more higher than other groups). London BB Equity Research seems to be around 70-75k GBP with around 50% bonus. Hope London pay catches up with the US like the old days when pound was strong.
Time to jump around if other firms offer higher pay
London BB more on the 60k range, with the exception of MS/GS (and maybe JP)
Is this JEFF?
Any news on associate pay?
。
I genuinely feel that the recent couple years really really screwed ER over. Hiring is through the roof so headcount is being added but many teams are extremely understaffed in the meantime as recruiting takes forever. Then ER is basically holding the short end of the stick and receiving comp increases vastly slower than IB and that's not even mentioning the bonuses. Firms are talking about record demand, record revenue and yet are giving nothing in return.
Anyhow my quick rant and why I am trying hard to switch out.
Record revenue is attributed to IB, so ER gets the short end of the stick like you said.
MM Year 2 Associate in Research- base: 60k unchanged YoY (absolute shit show, considering rising inflation, negative growth)- base: 3 months
This can’t be NYC..?
No, Singapore
I think you're underpaid but i also heard of some firms that pay really low...?
definitely underpaid but recently managed to lateral into BB IB, so all's good
Anyone have comp data for Oppenheimer?
Any idea what associate bonuses are like at Oppenheimer?
Any pay raises recently?
2H 2022 onwards raised to ~125-140k usd (I'm in Asia). Hopefully my bank won't rescind (??) That lol given the recession/layoff rumors everywhere
Anyone know what “senior associate “ comp at Jefferies looks like? Right below VP
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