Investment Banking in Mexico
I am Mexican and completely fluent in both English and Spanish, but I go to university in the U.S. and have practiced almost all of my IB technicals in English.
I am interested in learning more about investment banking in Mexico and wanted to ask a few questions for anyone who has recruited, interned, or worked there.
For interviews, how much of the process is conducted in Spanish vs. English? Are technical questions usually asked in Spanish, English, or a mix of both? I am comfortable speaking Spanish in general, but I am slightly concerned about explaining accounting, valuation, and modeling concepts in Spanish since I learned and practiced them in English.
For the actual job, what is the day-to-day language like? Are models, decks, and client materials usually prepared in English, Spanish, or both? Do bankers use English finance terms even when speaking Spanish, or is it important to know the formal Spanish terminology?
Also, how does IB in Mexico compare to the U.S. in terms of deal flow, hours, exits, compensation, and overall analyst experience?
Would appreciate any insight from people familiar with the market.
Not working in Mexico but have a few friends who have interviewed/work there.
Interviews are pretty much a mix between English and Spanish (depending on your background). Concepts are mostly/always on English. So don't worry about learning how to say EBITDA in Spanish. People use English concepts on the day to day.
Comp is significantly lower than in the US. Top firms (GS/MS/JPM) pay around $5k/month gross, however it is justified due to the LCOL. MM firms pay way less at ~$2.5k. Hours are the same or slightly less brutal. No idea on exits, most of my friends plan to stay in banking and some of them plan to do an MBA to eventually move to the US.
Basically this. And despite the haircut in comp, you’ll be much better off due to the low COL (that is if you work at one of the BBs mentioned above - as they tend to pay 1-3x more than MMs).
Advised Mexican cartel merge with Colombian peso gang. Opex synergies include elimination of intermediaries together with better sales prospects in Miami
Interesting, would have been nice to be part of the Sinaloa-CJNG merger.
Would have gotten a big bonus without a doubt.
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Seconding here - most technicals will be in English with behaviorals / softer vibe check in Spanish. There will be market-based questions tied to LATAM economies though (knowing major recent bond offerings, largest public companies in each country, etc). I will say Mexican bankers are very grindy and take their job very seriously, but that has just been my experience. As mentioned above, large cap mandates are dominated by GS/MS/JPM across LATAM (includes Argentina / Peru / Brazil satellite offices, not just CDMX), but there are some good country specific MMs especially in South America.
Can confirm Mexican bankers are grindy and very proud about their work. Target schools also play a big role in Mexico, if you are not ITAM/TEC/IBERO it's literally impossible getting into IB (unless at another top private school). For context, there are ~1-2 spots per recruiting season per bank with ~700 applicants each.
Would be amazing if BBs paid NYC salary like some do (did?) in São Paulo
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