Big 4 Corporate Finance or Boutique Investment Banking
Which would be a better choice for someone aiming to move on to a BB of MM investment bank in the future?
The Big 4 role, I should note, is not Transaction Services or FDD, but involves M&A, disposals, MBOs and LBOs, fund raising, etc., as does the boutique.
The boutique wouldn't be well known at all internationally but is the leading investment bank in the country (I'm in Europe, if that makes a difference). Also, as opposed to the Big 4, they do act as underwriters in IPOs and as primary issuers of corporate bonds and have an S&T division. They also wouldn't have the same independence issues that the Big 4 would have related to their audit work so perhaps that leads to better clients (as the Big 4 would rather audit those clients).
Of the 50+ publicised deals on their website, average deal value at this boutique is €500m, though that is skewed by the deals which are in the billions, which is roughly 15%. I can't comment as to the flow and frequency of these deals, however.
Which would be better for getting into BB or MM investment banks in London a few years down the line? The Big 4 role, which has the advantage of name recognition, does some big deals themselves, and would provide the opportunity to qualify as an ACA or the boutique?
