Christians in IB how do you do it?
I’m an incoming AN1 at BB and consider myself a faithful and devout Christian. Unfortunately this job is expected to take a majority of my time. I have a few questions for other analysts or seniors who may have some advice about this!
How do you maintain balance with work and faith? It seems hard to put Christ first when the time itself is such a limiting factor.
Do you have any community with other Christians in finance? It seems hard for others at church at times to relate.
How do you let Christ’s love be shown through yourself in the workplace? Esp in this eat what you kill industry
Would love to hear your thoughts! And open to any doesn’t have to be IB but this is more specifically for jobs with long hours
I tend to go hit a line in the bathroom while praying I don’t get a “pls fix”
Nice
Nice
And Amen
respect
Vast majority of people in IB don’t believe in God and treat other people like shit.
brutal but true. or are christians in name only and will code switch as such
I am not a Christian - I am of a different persuasion.
There is a Christian girl in my Analyst Class who goes to Church on Sundays, partakes in her Christian community and still manages to work very hard. She's also a very pleasant person.
I don't think you will have issues.
Query what you mean by the third point? If you mean to proselytize, this is completely unacceptable. If you mean to just be a nice, good person, then that is fairly easy to do.
Please just be mindful that people do not want to come to work to hear or engage in theological debates or conversations. It is perfectly fine to say you are going on a trip with your Church or you went and helped out at a Soup Kitchen with them on a Sunday, but when you veer into "oh I don't do that because God said this and that" - then it gets odd and inappropriate.
I wouldn't even ask someone else for their religious views unless they offer the info up. For example, if you see someone who abstains from eating pork, you can make an inference but don't go and ask them if they don't eat it for religious reasons because it can make the person feel uncomfortable.
I hope this is helpful and gives you comfort that your spirituality won't need to be sidelined - I note most banks should have a universal praying room for people of all faiths too.
I’m assuming the third point means that you can actually follow your religion and aren’t asked to do things considered immoral, e.g. lie/deceive or work on a PornHub acquisition something.
Not really possible
Catholic here and manage to pray my rosary everyday / go to church on Sunday, it is a question of priority. If you make clear that this is a priority for you no one will bother (working in London at top 3 BB).
You do know that usury is not permitted under Christianity like it isn’t under Islam? Usury means charging interest whatsoever. It’s just the heretics who have been ok with it.
Buddy does not know ball
.
There's a radical difference between the mordern (wester) Catholic position, and the pre-modern Catholic position which was in fact copy-pasted from ancient Roman Catholicism / Eastern Orthodoxy into Many components of sharia.
Even modern protestant denominations only have the most superficial of similarities to ancient protestants. Martin Luther's documented views on usury (which were not at all controversial in any pre–19th century version of Christianity) are totally identical with the Islamic position.
So no—appealing to the contents of a website of a modern Catholic born into a capitalist country won't do
If you look up “usury” the following definition is “the action or practice of lending money at unreasonably high rates of interest,” not “charging interest whatsoever.” Emphasis on avoiding unjust exploitation rather than simply charging interest
wtf does “put Christ first mean”? If you’re working long hours, Christ gets demoted to second place?
Who’s throwing ms at this guy? It’s true I don’t see the reason why you’d just stop being faithful if you work long hours
You must be be where. The young white male user base hates when I keep it real. ESP about Trump or their faux Christianity rhetoric.
"How do you let Christ’s love be shown through yourself in the workplace?"
By saying "peace be with you" after stabbing someone in the back.
No need to be so dramatic, can do normal Christian things and still work in banking
Think of it like a crusade and we are already doing God’s work as someone said - all halal or kosher if you know what I mean
It’s not always easy that’s for sure. You start by telling your team hey I’m going to work super hard and be available when you need me but it’s really important for me to be offline for a few hours on Sunday to go to church, maybe two hours on a weeknight evening to go to community group, etc. Generally people get that and if you’re working hard and doing a good job then they’ll be fine with it. Might have to miss Bible study/cg when you’re in crunch time but hopefully not too often. Beyond that if you want to have a quiet time then you’ll have to do it before work or be intentional about carving time out when there’s a slow moment. I was particularly bad about this when I was in IB and I’m not the best about it even now but man taking time to read Gods word and pray is so so valuable and so often speaks to the daily I need for whatever is going good/bad in the moment.
So that’s the time piece. As far as integrating faith and work, go read Jordan Raynor’s books esp The Sacredness of Secular Work. They’re really good resources on how we should view work in a secular environment. Kellers Every Good Endeavor is another one.
On Gospel conversations- by far my weakest spot. I tend to overthink things and get in my own way so it has to be the Spirit leading. All I can say is that they’ll happen and I look for opportunities to have them but they’re less frequent. They generally come up when I’m actually connecting with coworkers and hearing about what’s going on in their life or something about their upbringing that we share in common and there’s an opportunity to speak Gospel truth into it after they’ve asked a question. Key there - when someone asks a question then you can give a real answer. Dont have to be preachy but it’s perfectly fine to be authentic if that’s the core of who you are.
Last but far from least - maybe the most important - your words and actions day to day are your witness. My words don’t always line up with who I believe God has called me to be so I’m constantly praying for patience and reminders to speak differently than the people around me. Again this isn’t being preachy but sanctification is becoming more like Christ in word and deed. So when there’s a situation where everyone else would act or speak in a way that isn’t the most God-glorifying (getting mad, gossiping, etc), that’s an opportunity to model Christ’s love.
Great thoughts here and not much to add other than that it’s hard to be faithful in a very secular environment.
Santification and Consecration
Redeemer NYC?
I heard Jeff analysts nap at the church at 55th and 5th, or was it 53rd and 5th?
Meditate on his law day and night. Ask Him for patience with that nasty MD or annoying intern. Memorize a verse a day. Go to a Bible believing, Bible saturated, Christ-exalting church.
None of these points are 50/50 balanced. It’s 100% all the time for God’s glory.
Misc notes:
IB does not have to feel like a dog eat dog world if you choose to accept God’s plan and forgive others who are focused on worldly things.
The promotion, compliments, and money may or may not come. You do not have to worry about it if you focus on seeking His kingdom first. Be satisfied in Him.
Pray often and try your best to set a good example for others through your actions so the glory of God shines through in all you do. It does get tough many times when you get busy but if you find that it is a big struggle, nothing wrong with taking a step back to re-evaluate what you are really after in this life. Good luck!
Two thoughts:
I genuinely think a long term career in IB is unsuitable for a Christian. Frankly, high finance is just not a place i see Christians thriving save for a select few spots (maybe). It's genuinely making me want to leave. I'm not blaming the industry as it was 100% my choice but I really do hate how difficult it is for me to set apart time for God.
Worst case, you can try to work on some of the restructuring cases for the dioceses that have too high of pedophilia claims
There's more pedos per capita in high schools than at a diocese
My unpopular opinion is I don't think that anyone who is really truly in high finance , be it buyside sellside IB PE SNT whatever, is actually truly hardcore religious, so this is an interesting thread to read
Frankly, I agree. In my experience, being in high finance makes it challenging to sustain a spiritual life. The culture often rewards pragmatism, ambition, and short-term wins over traditional moral frameworks, so it’s hard to envision many people remaining in the industry long-term while fully living out a deeply Christian faith. That said, I believe there’s value in having Christians in high finance — I just haven’t personally figured out how to do that.
yea you put it better than me. Matthew 19:24
literally sums it up
del
Spot on. Maybe mormons but Christians no.
My dad is a pastor and I have many many hard core religious friends. NONE of them were thinking about “networking”, “technical prep” etc when they were in undergrad.
They went to class, studied hard, go to bible study 1-2x a week, and went to go get boba and kbbq with their bible study groups. Their mindset is whatever God has planned will be good for them and there isn’t too much they can do. Like literally they study hard and pray. Lol
Yes, the mindset for Christianity is completely different, esp undergrads in Christian fellowships. This exactly describes the people I met in my undergrad Christian fellowship; however, most of them went into tech/software engineering or academia instead of banking or trading. There were also only two business majors who were in the Christian fellowship to begin with lol.
Communicate early about needing Sundays off (ideally before you get a teams message on Sunday in church). When you have downtime inbetween comments, dive into the word and get some Bible study in.
I’d say the most crucial thing is to show the others in your office that you are a Christian by doing things as Jesus would want us to do them. Be compassionate, forgive others, and love your neighbor as yourself. Also, don’t put up with inherently bad things; say something. If you have Jesus in your heart, you’re going to be a much calmer and less stress prone person (notice I didn’t say less focused on your work) and this will confuse people over time; so much that they’ll probably ask you how you stay so chill / kind to others. That’s the time to tell them about Jesus in your life.
Would a Christian community in finance do well? I’ve thought about starting something like this but honestly don’t know if it exists already
Can't have your wealth testify against you if you spend it all
I let it show through my disclaimers.
This model contains forward-looking statements, projections and estimates. All numbers and calculations are derived from assumptions and sources not independently verified. No representation or warranty is given as to accuracy or completeness, no reliance may be placed on this model, and recipients must perform their own independent assessment. Ya'll better pray to God that these projections are even directionally correct.
Not in IB, still going to give my two cents. I get off work around the same time every day (7:30PM), and have made it a routine to stop at the Church that’s on my way home, reflect on things and pray. Also I find the habit of praying as soon as you wake up to be extremely helpful.
I donate a portion of my salary to education and career programs for low-income special needs kids in my hometown, as I used to be one of them myself.
During holidays and when I return home, I volunteer with the program and focus on mentoring the kids.
I managed to get into a great college on a full ride and get a great job after, and to whom much is given, much is expected, and I know, from experience, the struggles of growing up as a special needs kid in rural America in a school system that is unable to meet my needs.
From this, I feel my purpose and that God has put me in a position to understand the struggles of a specific group and how to best help them, from experience.
I’ve said this here before, but I was in a bible study while I was a BB analyst in NYC. We all made it every week and started it after we all realized we went to the same church. 9am on Sunday is pretty easy to make. We held our bible study at 10pm on Thursdays, which worked well. Sometimes we all had to head back to the office, but our friend’s apt was 4 blocks away so it wasn’t a problem.
You have to be your own advocate but it's very doable - I used to block off two hours on my calendar to attend Church on Sundays, and nobody ever questioned it. If I was on a busy live deal I would sometimes have to go on Saturday night if I had a diligence call on Sunday morning, but outside of that, I never really got much pushback for stepping out on a Sunday morning.
That’s very generous of them to give you two hours off (most weeks only)
I went to church early (730AM-930AM) - I think it's pretty rare for IBD to be fully online prior to 9AM in my experience.
I'll bite
I would consider myself a "strong" Christian (meaning I care about my faith, go to church, etc.) and have been in IB for a little over a year now in a very busy group. I am a 23M for reference.
OP, feel free to PM me if you want to get in touch and discuss this more
Amen
Would anyone have interest in joining a WSOChristians Discord chat if it was created?
Yes
Yes
Here is the newly created WSO Christians server on Discord - https://discord.gg/9NMMeUSU
In my experience, it’s best to be selective about sharing it, as the finance world—especially IB/PE—has relatively few openly Christian professionals, and there can be stereotypes attached. For example, during a PE super day lunch, someone (who went to my undergrad and knew mutual friends) mentioned I had been involved in a Christian fellowship in college. The MD and associates immediately looked up at me like I had three heads. It gave me the impression that the label carries connotations of being overly rule-bound or naïve. That’s not universal, but it’s worth being aware of. I’m also female, so it’s possible gender dynamics played a role, and I’ve found it’s usually better to share that part of myself with people I know will respect it.
Re your second question, I also don’t usually share in church settings that I work in IB. I’ve noticed that when I mention to Christians that I work in IB, the conversation often shifts and they can become less talkative. It seems to create a sense of distance, so I just say something vague like I work in finance.
Honestly wondering the same thing myself. I'm not in IB and only recently was a consulting intern but having spent the past 8 weeks traveling to NYC and spending time not able to talk about faith with anyone or have meaningful conversations was incredibly draining spiritually. I really don't think 90+% of these people in these high careers could ever truly be near me or my friends.
I just got cut from that job actually and re-recruiting now to hopefully work FT at an even better firm, but I suppose some good can come of these careers if we view them as a means to better our families and consider all the prestige, money, benefits to be for loss other than to be used by God.
I've been meditating this whole summer on Psalm 73, particularly "Nothing on earth I desire besides you," and "God is the strength of my heart, and my portion forever." I certainly don't feel that my heart has reached Asaph's when he wrote these words, but I pray that one day I, and all our brothers and sisters (especially in these fields) can understand what it means to desire nothing but God, so that in Him we lack nothing.
Something just recently hit my spirit actually. At my past internship, I once brought up reading CS Lewis’ Mere Christianity recently. Afterward, I was struck with fear at the thought my colleagues and senior employees may begin to alienate or resent me because of my faith (whether that’s actually accurate or not).
I think the end to all this hard work is something greater and bigger than any monetary or status benefit; it’s the platform to speak boldly and powerfully in any setting about our faith when given the opportunity. As an intern I felt a need to separate faith from work, but one day as a 2+YOE with several work options lined up? The first few years, I believe, may be primarily about not letting the industry change us. After that, though, is the opportunity to materially affect change in the workplace and to people all around us.
One thing - don’t go around talking about it a lot / trying to convert people. Show your faith through your actions alone. If there is an appropriate situation to lightly bring it up that you’re Christian, that’s fine. I’m catholic and go to church every Sunday, but maybe 2 - 3 people I work with even know that. I’m not hiding it, but I think it’s best to keep your personal beliefs to yourself and most importantly don’t judge others. Most people, including myself, don’t want to have a deep conversation about faith at work.
I'm a devout Christian who recently left banking. Here are some of my thoughts / reflections / pieces of advice, apologies that it's unorganized.
1. Prioritize getting to church as often as you can: Bible studies / young adult groups often meet at like 6pm on Wednesdays, so you unfortunately won't be able to make many of those. If you do by chance get out early one night, do your best to go to those events, they will be so refreshing. If you're lucky, you'll be able to go to the same church every week. While I would absolutely make trying to go to the same church a priority, Sunday work is so erratic (pings and fire drills can come at 8am or 10pm and bosses are rarely sympathetic to your plans) that I used to rely on websites to help find services and their times. If I had a quiet morning one week, I'd find a service and go then, if I had a quick window at 2pm or 5pm, I'd find one and rush out to go then.
2. Prepare to be in situations that make you uncomfortable: I had MDs and VPs openly make fun of anyone who was religious, sometimes in pretty terrible language. Unfortunately it's just a part of the culture, and I just had to keep my head down as much as it hurt. Prayer helps a lot here. You will also be in situations where you are exposed to excessive drinking, drugs, and certain types of partying / clubs that will challenge your willpower as a Christian. It's always best to just disengage. Better to leave a team event 5 minutes too early and maybe get teased for it than to get stuck in a situation you aren't comfortable in and end up doing / seeing something you regret. Even beyond the bigger vices that teams might engage in, there will always be banter / office talk about general excess, whether money, status, or relationships. It's not fun, and you will definitely get worn down by it, but again the best action is to just keep your head down, not engage, and pray. In a funny way, overhearing these conversations sometimes actually strengthened my faith, reminding me of how empty a life is when spent pursuing the riches of the world.
3. Add small routines into your day to take time back: Other posts in these comments are offering some great real strategies, so I'll also just add a few that kept me sane. I would pray each day on the subway into the office. If I had 10 minutes at lunch, I would stop by a church nearby to pray in the pews. A big one for me was I would try to call as many Christian friends from back home regularly just to stay grounded and remind myself I was in a bubble.
4. Have a healthy theology regarding money: Let me be the first to tell you, the second that first banking paycheck hits your account, the temptations will set in to want more and think you deserve more. However, you will quickly see that you can always spend more money, often on things you didn't even know existed. Your peers will always have a nicer apartment, a better watch, a fancier reservation. And if you get too absorbed, it can spiral. I've seen senior bankers act like they are poor because one of their fellow analysts from 20 years ago has more houses than they do, or one of their business school buddies hit it rich on a startup. Meanwhile they clear more than most people in history have ever made, but they can't fully appreciate it or use it well. Something that really helped me here was looking for more charities / church missions to donate to. It proved to be a great outlet that humanized the work I did, and also more importantly reminded me that the point of my earnings wasn't just to hoard it like some high score, but rather to help build the kingdom. A Scripture verse I always found particularly helpful to meditate on for those moments is 1 Timothy 6:7 - "For we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of it."
Hopefully something in this is helpful. Please feel free to PM, happy to share more if interested. There will be tough moments, but just know there are other Christians out there rooting for you. If you get the chance, James and 2 Timothy are two of the shortest books in the Bible and both directly address many of the issues you'll come across in banking, if nothing else definitely go read those. God bless!
Thank you for sharing this, it is encouraging to read
To add on a little more we had 2 Jewish people on our team, including the staffer, who observed Shabbat starting on Friday. We had a Muslim guy who did prayer time in the analyst lounge. We had a devout Sikh and a couple of committed Christians. Everyone was super respectful of everyone else's religious practices.
I have meet few MDs who are openly tell their juniors that I do not give comments on Sundays as it is Lords day.
Just preach to your MD bruh
Amen
Eius eligendi enim temporibus et repellat aut. Aut reprehenderit animi qui doloremque aspernatur. Quos sapiente dicta quis voluptatem molestiae error soluta. Rem dolores velit fuga tempore sed autem eos. Eaque velit animi ad consequatur voluptatem. Corrupti voluptatem quam aspernatur est.
Culpa sit quia saepe a commodi et occaecati ipsa. Necessitatibus asperiores itaque magni omnis nobis ut ex. Odio quaerat sunt corrupti nostrum incidunt voluptatum quis. Et consequatur omnis ipsum repellendus nulla sequi autem. Aut totam veritatis quidem tempore molestiae cum sed. Dolorum est consequatur et nesciunt quibusdam ut. Quos pariatur atque at a.
Sit qui veniam molestias ut quia. Eaque corporis iusto quibusdam aut excepturi ducimus. Non corrupti nihil qui. Distinctio omnis molestiae ratione quia amet a.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...
Accusantium cumque fugit a doloribus vel. Sunt facilis dicta voluptate at. Alias facilis doloremque dignissimos suscipit est dolore. Expedita qui tempora nemo laudantium ea autem. Quod modi doloribus qui dicta velit. Pariatur doloremque mollitia est dolor quia.
Iure ducimus fugiat hic molestiae. Error quia nesciunt qui quia explicabo est quo. Consequatur quae optio eaque ullam officiis non non.
Et consequatur vel repudiandae voluptatem enim accusamus. Enim quia impedit molestias rerum. Rerum veniam vero tempore sint aut. Labore et eveniet dolores accusamus. Ex explicabo voluptatum perspiciatis eaque ut temporibus.
Sit sequi itaque eaque vero quaerat nihil minima. Cupiditate ad sed aut sed. Hic itaque asperiores voluptatem impedit eum doloribus. Exercitationem id adipisci aut quia eos aut cumque. Aut aliquam nisi laudantium rem nesciunt laboriosam necessitatibus.
Eius consectetur ut ut mollitia eaque saepe. Suscipit quia adipisci consequatur nihil culpa velit sed. Libero sapiente ut magnam quo porro et. Mollitia nihil ab voluptatum vel est voluptas nam.
Voluptas provident sit quas. Sunt culpa eaque fugiat velit omnis. Eum tempora ullam quas adipisci. Aut laboriosam et totam a soluta officiis dolore. Quia distinctio facilis adipisci veniam dolorem.
Maiores quam quidem consequatur. Dolor dignissimos a maiores quasi sunt voluptatem.
Sit ut distinctio incidunt inventore quos et rerum. Quia quo delectus quae non fugiat aliquam. Ut inventore ut labore vel reprehenderit.
Esse reprehenderit quam et aut deserunt sit. Sit voluptatem voluptatem at recusandae fugiat. Ad temporibus rerum laboriosam tenetur repellat quaerat. Eum alias repellendus delectus incidunt perferendis aut. Quo quia corporis accusamus molestiae eos deleniti.