FT Partners pay/reputation in tech IB?

Saw that they have more followers on LinkedIn than Qatalyst. But do they pay on par with Qatalyst? They seem like they have good deal flow. I don't know much about the firm or anyone there (non target). Would love to get insight. Thanks

51 Comments
 

Holy fuck 140k an 1 base? That's better than CVP damn. Should've went here instead of the lower tier BB I chose lol

 
ExpensiveCashFlow

Saw that they have more followers on LinkedIn than Qatalyst. 

This was a good chuckle, idk if that was the intent but thank you

FT pays quite well, has solid deal flow, and does interesting stuff in fintech. That said the hours are some of the worst on the street and their reputation has suffered because of how they treat juniors. Everyone I know who has worked there left early and had only negative things to say about culture and WLB.

Funny example on that, last spring when morale was low across the street and banks were throwing cash/Pelotons/more cash at juniors, FT sent out a bizarre commemorative coin with the founder's face on it... gives you an idea of the management there.

 

The pay is that high for a reason, they would have trouble attracting top candidates if their comp was in line with everyone else (I'd argue they still won't be a top destination, even with that comp)

I don't work at FT, maybe someone else can chime in - I'm sure things have calmed down a bit, but their junior issues and reputation long predate COVID so that wasn't exactly an isolated blip of issues. Do a search on here, there is some info both older and more recent.

Look they do quite well in their space, but I wouldn't let a slightly higher pay sway you from a Q, EB, top BB etc. If you have those offers you should leave FT in the dust. If you don't have options elsewhere, FT does deals and you can lateral out easily, but for most people it is not their first choice bc of the culture problems.

 

Interesting to see the differences in name rec considering how they work on very similiar things. Was wondering why there is such a drastic different in the follower count if they're both boutique based.

 

I think you might be a bit hard pressed to find anyone taking FT Partners over BAML and Barclays. CS is a bit of a sinking ship but their name brand might carry them onwards for a few more years like Greenhill. Unless you're only focused on GE, VC and some Tech only PE roles, I think your exits from a BB would be significantly better. FT and most MM and EBs will pay more than those BB's, but we're talking maybe 20k-30k ish a year difference pre tax. Hate to admit it but where you start your career does significantly impact your career trajectory, so if you're giving up optionality to make 15-20k post tax dollars, you should probably re-evaluate your priorities.

 

They really do crush it in FinTech broadly, covering sub-verticals like Payments, Wealth-tech, Cap mkts tech, and financial management solutions. They also invest small amounts in their deals and tie up their clients to very long-tail engagement letters. They're also really good at identifying clients early on and locking them up by doing a lot of earlier cap raising work for them with ROFRs on all future banking engagements.

From an employee standpoint, have heard it's extremely sweaty and not a fun place to work, though it seems you do get good experience. Don't have enough information to say whether or not I'd recommend working there but seems like you'd get a lot out of your experience there if you're willing to sacrifice your life for your tenure there.

Also the linkedin follows mean next to nothing so please don't use that as a proxy for anything.

 

I once heard someone say they worked a year with no time off

I know it's easy to look at jobs as a college sophomore/junior and think that you can do it, and who cares they pay a bunch

However, once you're there, and that's it, you're working 9-2am every single day, no weekends, you realize how unsustainable it all is. I would really evaluate how much you really care about getting "good mm experience" before deciding to work for a place like that. I myself would work at a lower tiered bank with a better work life balance than jump into a place like FT Partners

 

check out "banks with worst HR thread" and people were literally destroying FT partners. HR over there seems shitty as hell. 

 

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