DCM Path
I'm interested in going into DCM. Yes, I understand that it usually comes with a sacrifice in regards to exit opps.
Any insight on whether or not the "path" of going into DCM is any different than it would be for M&A? Tips on internships, target schools, competition, etc. would be helpful....
More generally, which BBs and boutiques have good DCM groups? Is DCM big in any other cities --- like Houston, SF, Chicago, Boston, Atlanta?
I would also like to hear a response to this. Also (don't mean to hijack your thread), for someone who doesn't at all care about exit ops, is there anything bad about DCM compared to M&A?
Based on other threads on here, the learning curve isn't as steep. As a result, some find the actual work in DCM to be more "mundane."
Mundane - "lacking interest or excitement; dull:"
Sell-side M&A analyst here and about 85% of my day is spent doing mundane tasks.
mundane is a horrible way to put it. its very simple. doesn't require a lot of thinking once you get it. then you could just fuck around at work.
what is wrong with y'all.
delete
Path wise, I don't think it is going to be too big of a deal for students. The only major difference I can think of is probably technical questions. Having gone through the recruiting process myself, I find M&A groups usually have more difficult questions.
BBs usually all have pretty decent DCM groups because of their distribution capacity. Not so sure about boutiques though...
Could you elaborate on DCM not being "too big of a deal for students"? Is that implying that there's generally less competition?
My impression is that at least for many BBs, M&A group is a bit more difficult to get in compared to DCM. With that being said, most interviewers are not expecting a candidate to know too much in-depth knowledge, especially if you have limited relevant experience.
Just to confirm, when you say DCM are you referring specifically to high grade and not including Levfin?
Yes. At least in the original post, my questions were more directed towards investment grade. If you have any insight on Levfin, however, I would love to hear about it.
(Caveat: What I say below applies strictly to investment grade DCM.)
In terms of "the path": You have to interview with a lot of people at all levels, have them all like you and have good grades. Is it less selective than your typical M&A or coverage group? I don't know for sure, but I doubt it is much less selective if at all. Most DCM groups are far smaller than a bank's combined M&A+coverage groups (although larger than any one of those), and they are recruiting the same 3.5+ GPA kids from the same Ivies, etc... Now again, the odds are the M&A group is harder to get into simply because of supply and demand, but it's not like DCM group are letting kids with 3.0 GPAs from Yale, or 4.0s from Middle Tennessee University in. The credentials required are more or less the same; just the M&A group will get their pick of the litter
The banks with the best DCM groups are those with the biggest balance sheets. DCM is very balance sheet driven; i.e. the guys who act either as lenders to the issuers and/or have the ability to trade large volumes of their paper. To be big in DCM, you need to have a pulse on the credit market and the ability to sell new issues, and to have a pulse on the market and sell new issues you need to have a big credit trading operation. Few boutiques have this because they don't have the capital needed to do so.
Given DCM relies so heavily on trading, and vice versa, most banks have the bulk of their DCM groups located in NYC. You might find the odd energy-focused group in Houston/Dallas, and small regionals may have their DCM groups located in their home bases, but really New York is the only place you want to be in the U.S. if you are doing DCM.
That definitely makes sense as to why they could be more selective. Thanks for the rundown.
So if one wants to head into DCM, he should be prepared to stay in NYC for a good while?
dude what is the networking bs. just send your resume to hr. if you have the experience you're qualified
If you're interested in going to EMEA, HSBC is the lead in DCM in almost every other market; as stated before, yes it has a lot to do with their balance sheet. why work at a small boutique M&A shop with limited dealflow to say you were in M&A when you could be working on financings for some of the biggest M&A transactions of the year and have actual deal experience
I disagree with DCM being mundane. All jobs at an analyst level is mundane to begin with. Having said that, I think DCM's pathway allows you to handle the deal on your own quicker + you get to have client exposure earlier. DCM deals tend to be higher frequency and they close faster, so you see a lot more deals compared to M&A deals that take >6 months to sometimes even 1 year + before closing.
I think the skill sets would be different but not necessary lacking in terms of exit opportunities. DCM is sort of a hybrid between investment banking + markets, so if you like the markets, you probably enjoy DCM more than M&A, which is more financial statement/accounting based. For example, if you wanted to go into corporates later on in your career, do corporates more often do mergers and acquisitions, launch IPOs or do bonds for capital raising? You can always go into bond syndication later on and you have more exposure to the sales and trading side as you will probably sit near the trading desk (although there will be a chinese wall between you as you will have the interest of the originator in mind, whereas they have the interest of the investors). Also, bonds are the most traded asset class in the markets.
agree here. as long as you can give market update, speak about debt capacity/leverage, and walk them through the syndicate process then you're good to go.
that's what happened to me. just threw me in front of clients lol. then its just project management at that point
I don't know if you young' uns realize but its the job of other bankers to pitch/do other things in the bank. you just need to know your products.
Just to add to that, you can also see which teams (DCM, M&A, ECM) are in the top of any league table in which region by going into dealogic. Best of luck.
How is the work-life balance in DCM?
40-50 hours. Tbh idk where all these other clowns are working so hard? Never been at other banks so can't comment on their processes/work distribution
also remember to allocate properly. you're a dcm guy. if they go outside your territory that's not your problem
If you're curious about working in DCM (or rather who to work for) just go on EDGAR and find prospectus supplements for the major issuers. The dealers are listed at the bottom and you can easily find out who the big dogs are (bookrunner and leads). Best of luck!
Thanks for the tip!
Any advice on how to Navigate EDGAR? Never used it before and I've been trying to network this way for a couple weeks
Just go into the site and type a company you're interested in into the search ball. The world is your oyster at that point. You can see all of the public filings. For DCM try and find the codes used for prospectus filings to find them quicker for the company of interest.
Top MBA -> DCM summer internship. Viable way to break in or not? (Originally Posted: 11/05/2014)
Dear all,
I am desperate for your expert advices.
I graduated with a MSc in statistics from a Canadian university in 2011. At that time, I already had my eyes on a career in DCM. Apparently, I didn't succeed, and I have been drifting from one irrelevant job to the next ever since.
From working first in a media company to working now in the middle office of an Asset Management firm, I believe I have gone a long way getting closer to my destination over the past 3 years. However, given my current circumstances, I can't see what could be done to further my progess toward my goal.
Therefore, I am contemplating MBA studies in a top school to make a career change into DCM, via a DCM summer internship. So I am humbly posing this question to you all who know the ins and outs of the current job market - how good a chance do I have at securing a DCM summer internship given that I study MBA at Columbia/Chicago?
And how likely would that internship transform into a full-time offer upon completion.
Thanks a lot in advance for your helpful responses.
Do DCM groups even hire MBAs with no experience anymore?
Separately, I assume English is not your first language and it shows. If you talk the way you write you will likely find it difficult to break into DCM (or any other heavily client-facing front office roles, for that matter).
Thanks for your comment.
You are right, I am an immigrant from Singapore.
My English is definitely something I am constantly striving to improve.
Aside from my career question, may I ask what specific weaknesses in my English thay particularly stand out to you? (i.e., grammar, sentence construction, awkward expression, etc.)
Which is better for DCM? (Originally Posted: 02/20/2014)
Hey WSO,
I have an offer for a Corporate Treasury position as well as a Credit Analyst role.
I have heard of people making the jump to DCM from both roles but I was curious which one would be better for getting into DCM? A brief explanation would be helpful too.
Thanks
Bump. Any help would be appreciated.
Bump
In my opinion, the corporate treasury role would be better.
what type of credit analyst ?
If the credit analyst position is supporting a DCM team (eg working in the Credit/Risk Management team, facing the IB division's DCM team), then you're going to build a network with the DCM team, you can demonstrate skills and business understanding etc - that should facilitate getting into the DCM team.
Treasury analyst role, no question. Unless the credit analyst role is providing desk analysis on the buy/sell side, but then why would you want to move to DCM?
Sounds like the Treasury analyst role is my best bet. Thanks guys.
As for the credit analyst role, I should find out more about the role the job posting was very vague and the information I got from the interview wasn't much better. I will reach out to them and try to get some more background information.
Any more opinions are appreciated
Your interviewers were constrained by the interview format and time constraints. If they have made you an offer, you should not hesitate to call them and basically interview them about the job.
My team did SA interviews and made offers this week. At that stage, the balance of power flips and we are DESPERATE AS HELL (well, at least eager) to attract the chosen candidate. I was e-mailing my target candidate late at night to make sure he hadn't accepted a counteroffer.
Thanks, will do.
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