NY to London?

I really like London and want to work there at some point. I currently work at a bank that has a small office in London (less than 50 people) and I get a chance to transfer when doing A2A, but the London team is < NY team in terms of deal flow and brand recognition etc. My questions are:

1) Should I move to a bigger bank here at NY first and then transfer to London (I feel easier to lateral here)? If so, what BB/EB/Others (Jeff, RBC etc.) promote international mobility? Very curious on Rothschild. Not interested in balance sheet banks like Nomura or Mizuho.

Or 
2) Should I do a master or MBA at top schools like LBS/LSE? How are master programs at those schools viewed at US?

3) Work visa and sponsorship? I guess only big firms offer that?

If the topic was discussed before, please share a link below. Many thanks.

4 Comments
 
Most Helpful

Quick comment but I hope you'll get useful information from it

  • Your best bet is to lateral to a BB in NY, then ask for a transfer. Most BBs are open to transfer if you want to go A2A: GS, JPM, MS, Citi, BAML, CS.
  • Doing an MBA is a bad idea because only LBS is worth it, and it's still way less good than an M7 MBA. Applying to an MsC, even a top target one (LSE, Oxbridge) would be overkill since you're already working as an IBD analyst.
  • There may be exceptions, but generally speaking it's better to assume that only BBs will get you a work visa.
 

EBs sponsor as well. I don't think you need to bother with an extra step to be honest. I worked in a strong group at one of the Canadian banks and got poached by a London team and they took care of everything. 

Career Advancement Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 08 97.8%
  • Goldman Sachs 02 97.3%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Evercore No 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.8%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.3%

Professional Growth Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 97.3%

Total Avg Compensation

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (48) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (25) $178
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (83) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (75) $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...”