Is it true Placement Agents make more than IBD?

Was headhunted for a role at a placement agent, the recruiter said there are two main types of fund placement agents, the boutiques such as Rede, Campbell Lutyens etc.. and the fund advisory/placement divisions of investment banks like Evercore, PJT, UBS, Lazard, Credit Suisse etc..

They said everything online is quite inaccurate and people expect PAs to pay less than IBD or for boutique PAs to pay less than EBs but it's the opposite and the boutiques pay significantly higher than IBD/EBs. They said within a bank you would usually earn the same if not slightly less than their IBD teams, but at a top placement agent boutique you could earn double IBD/EBs.

They said they'd never recommend doing fund placement within a EB due to missing out on the higher pay the boutique PAs offer and said that the top placement agent boutiques they recruit for pay analysts 100% bonuses and their associates 200% or higher bonuses on a base salary the same as IBD and at the senior levels they easily clear millions.

Is this true? Or is the headhunter bullsh****** me to get me to apply?

4 Comments
 
Most Helpful

Expedita fugit pariatur rem commodi assumenda illo incidunt. Quo ratione asperiores debitis impedit quos quia debitis et. Commodi rerum aut error vitae. Nesciunt neque cumque maxime. Error similique architecto at pariatur.

Ipsam incidunt est aut id. Consequatur tenetur harum eveniet assumenda sed et nam.

Eum tempora error aut atque voluptatem autem consequuntur. Eos quo cupiditate ab quos. Qui ut molestiae ducimus molestiae et et.

Quam natus quae officia non est eligendi. Incidunt id quod et nihil praesentium et ut. Nobis consectetur sunt adipisci fugiat modi. Rerum excepturi nobis et voluptatibus vitae.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.3%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.7%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.3%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • Goldman Sachs 02 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (44) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (79) $150
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $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

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...”