Lazard or Rothschild & Co
Hello everyone,
If you had to choose between Lazard and Rothschild & Co for an M&A internship, which one would you go for?
Trending Content - Investment Banking Forum
| +90 | [2026 - October] Unbiased Prestige Rankings | 56 | 4h |
| +88 | Who is the final boss in Houston Energy? (GS, JEFF or EVR) | 21 | 1h |
| +78 | You should probably leave IB | 26 | 1d |
| +45 | Why Do We Turn Comments? | 10 | 2d |
| +43 | Tomorrow Will Be Better | 5 | 4d |
| +41 | Moelis PCA vs Lower tier BB Coverage | 30 | 1d |
| +25 | Banking (Un)fortunately Still Needs You: My Case for Bankers in the AI Era | 3 | 1d |
| +24 | Lateraling as Analyst | 24 | 1h |
| +24 | How much should you ask questions / seek feedback as an intern? | 9 | 11h |
| +24 | UBS IB #24 in US M&A in 2026 | 10 | 8h |
Career Resources
Depends on location, if US, go with Lazard, if EU (London / Paris) it is more of a toss up.
Lazard works on larger deals, but there is no doubt they are struggling to regain some of the market share they lost. The news a year ago that they were looking to sell to ADQ also didn't help.
Rothschild is an MM sellside machine, as a result they tend to work on slightly smaller deals, but it's a good place to be if you want to have lots of transactions under your belt / looking to be a career banker.
Both will give you an equal shot of exiting to PE
Thank you for your explanations, but why go through M&A to move into private equity? I’ve noticed that many profiles secure an internship in private equity during their master’s and then continue directly in the field without necessarily going through M&A.
if you're in the US, Lazard. if you're in the EU they are quite equal in terms of exits - but I've heard that return offer rate for Lazard is quite low in comparison for their summers.
For US Lazard has the edge, even though they have been underperforming over the last few years. For EU it's more balanced I would say - Both are considered the top EBs over there
Not Lazard anymore they have been bleeding talent in Europe and london
Agree, nowadays people would pick PJT and Evercore ahead of Lazard and Rothschild
how the tables turn
In Europe RTH >= LAZ. Laz has been doing smaller and smaller deals over the last few years, with lots of senior bankers jumping ship (similarly, NYC RX outflow). Would personally take Rothschild on the basis that deal size is now similar (historically RTH did more MM, but has grown) and trajectory is more positive than for Lazard.
In the US, take LAZ - RTH doesn’t have the global presence, does mostly MM deals and doesn’t seem to want to expand further in the US.
Neque aut odio quam et ex sit blanditiis. Blanditiis omnis velit et praesentium distinctio. Aut quia dolores enim aut exercitationem. Omnis aut neque omnis enim omnis blanditiis. Ut iure soluta quis quia est numquam rerum eligendi.
Quam repellat voluptatibus est aliquam nesciunt numquam maiores perferendis. Consequuntur nihil quia animi sint aut. Accusamus delectus neque iusto doloremque est possimus explicabo. Et et similique alias quo consequatur. Et accusamus iste quia labore. Sunt itaque ut quis fugiat. Repudiandae tempora sed totam itaque voluptas non exercitationem.
Et perferendis nisi minus porro nemo. Harum nostrum ex optio enim ullam. Repellendus placeat reprehenderit pariatur dolorum et error. Expedita sed rerum qui harum. Et necessitatibus sit rerum.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...