Hey all, wanted your thoughts on GS Lev Fin? It falls under the "financing" arm of GS IBD and not classics. Can anyone speak from experience as to what exits are like? Is it worth switching over from coverage at a lower-tier BB? Thanks in advance.
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They've got a great LevFin group, you work with sponsors all the time. You'll easily be able to go to a debt-focused exit if you want, like Cerberus or Oaktree. I'd think it would be a great place over a lower-tier BB coverage group unless the group is well-known despite bank ranking. Or, of course, unless you're extremely passionate about the coverage group and would prefer to work in an industry specialist role vs. a product specialist role.
They also get worked like crazy; I've got a few friends in the LevFin group and it's hard to get in touch (even moreso than normal bankers) because of how much they work. Obviously this is great if you're looking for a great work experience.
LevFin is pretty well-regarded
It's not as reputable as a JPM or BAML (#1 and #2 on the street respectively), but I still have heard good things about their lev fin group.
GS LevFin is fine and although it’s not the best LevFin group on the Street - the GS brand sort of carries it up a bit. it’s a fine place to go but you need to make sure that your pod that you place into does the modeling. some pods, like industrials, do the modeling in LevFin, others like FIG/RE tend to have the coverage bankers do it. you can easily spin this story but be wary that you’ll get different levels of exposure in different pods.
How does this pod (who holds the model) play out at the other top LevFin groups (JPM and BAML)?
Can confirm that pod-to-pod experience differs greatly within GS lev fin... Industrials and Healthcare do plenty of modeling / LBO and sponsor processes while a lot of other industry pods are more beholden to their corresponding coverage groups. High volume groups like TMT tend to churn internal processes while the coverage group handles most of the modeling. That being said, the opportunities you get (same goes for any group, really) are greatly dependent on the agency you claim and how willing you are to ask for more. All of the lev fin groups get worked just as hard as their coverage counterparts.
To follow up, exit opps are great - from traditional buyout to distressed credit opportunities, lev fin places well. The GS name definitely carries a strong weight, but your experience is always what you make of it.
Bumping this, do you know if the NatRes pod does a lot of modeling? Or any other teams in general?
NatRes is a struggling industry rn so things are strange. Typically, companies in this coverage universe operate in very different structures from others - think MLMs, etc.
bump on the NatRes pod question
I've only spoken to analysts in the LevFin group. One of my contacts is exiting to Blackstone GSO after his two years in the group.
Purely in terms of exits would this be a better place than one of the weaker coverage groups at GS/JPM/MS?
Not really. You are essentially trying to get the bonds to sell through the trading desks, it is mostly updating market slides and just looking at pricing, minimal modeling required/not a lot of M&A exposure, especially since all M&A is done in-house within coverage groups at GS. Exits here are probably more credit-oriented.
fair enough. trying to get a good sense of the group. posters above seem to regard it pretty highly in terms of modeling/exits
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