How is COVID affecting deal flow & working hours for IB analysts?

I am interested in hearing how the COVID crisis is affecting working hours in IB, especially for junior level staff.

I am an analyst at a regional M&A boutique, working on lower middle market deals. Pretty much every deal I am on has been put in a wait & see mode, with timelines being pushed back. Enough things to keep me busy, but very few urgent & high priority items. Over the past month, I have been working closer to 60 hour weeks, vs the 80-100 hours that are typical in normal times. Bonus will take a hit for sure.

However, I have heard stories of some analysts actually having a heavier work load. Rx will become understandably more busy. But for M&A & Capital Markets, I am trying to understand why this might be - are analysts at larger banks having to build COVID related scenarios into models? Any other reasons?

6 Comments
 
Most Helpful

Overall deal flow (all types) has slowed somewhat, but far more noticeably has shifted from M&A towards 1) Rx, 2) liability management, 3) capital raises and 4) prospecting / pitching for 1-3. Total hours have been pretty similar, though working from home makes the downtime a lot more enjoyable (e.g. reading a book on the couch in PJs instead of reading the WSJ in your chair in a tie).

 

Voluptatem quas aut quaerat omnis. Eaque dolor porro omnis. Illum assumenda unde ipsa distinctio vel doloremque incidunt. Velit quia at aut est. Sunt at non eum voluptas. Porro aspernatur provident temporibus.

 

Omnis molestiae vero veniam dicta aut culpa. Laudantium sint qui quo quas ut. Nisi hic ipsam suscipit esse maiores nihil voluptas deleniti. Culpa aliquid illum cum possimus exercitationem placeat ex voluptatem.

Veritatis inventore reprehenderit aperiam. Qui ut possimus dolor minus ut. Dicta ut distinctio earum eos earum ad.

Eveniet cupiditate accusantium dolores ad nihil. Commodi qui quas ut ad mollitia provident. Iste sequi et numquam dolor.

Career Advancement Opportunities

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 99.0%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Guggenheim Partners 02 97.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 97.4%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 99.0%
  • Evercore 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.9%
  • BMO Capital Markets 13 97.4%

Professional Growth Opportunities

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 99.0%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.9%
  • JPMorgan No 97.4%

Total Avg Compensation

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (57) $264
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (28) $184
  • Intern/Summer Associate (16) $161
  • 1st Year Analyst (84) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (76) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
8
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
10
Mimbs's picture
Mimbs
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”