Is it proper to ask for a job from an IB after they cold call your dad to sell his business?

My friend's dad received a call from a boutique M&A investment bank looking to help sell his dad's business. Since my friend wants to work in the IB field, should he use this moment to call and inquire about an internship with them or would that be frowned upon? I'm not sure if this will rub off the wrong way or not. My friend is a rising junior at a non-target. Thanks!

11 Comments
 

It may seem "sleazy" or something, but that is actually a fantastic opportunity for your friend to leverage. Their level of eagerness to help your friend will probably be correlated with how much money they will generate on the deal. Honestly if we were talking about a BB rather than a boutique, I would say your friend would be in an even better spot, as they would have many more positions available.

Honestly this is just part of the business and the bankers will likely go out of their way to be helpful to your friend. Think about it: if they make way more on this deal than the cost of paying him as an intern, it looks attractive. I would utilize this 100%.

 
Most Helpful

If selling the company is like 5 years out - sure doesn’t matter and go for it.

If it’s near term - more to lose. Let’s say it’s a random boutique that’s not so good at its job. dad company has $10mm EBITDA. Son gets internship, now he feels owed and gives mandate. Boutique is not so good at what it does, messes up the process where it either fails and company gets a bad rap and it’ll take years to monetize again or you get a lower price. Even 2x difference in multiple is like $20mm hit to what the dad / family would make - not worth the internship at some random boutique. If he doesn’t give the mandate, everyone hates the son when he is working there - also awkward. It’s the dad’s best interest to hire the best possible bank vs trying to get a low fee or get some internship favor.

 

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