Offer in DCM/debt advisory team rather than M&A/Industry - what should I do? (London)
Hi all, I've been offered a graduate analyst role at a top bank (not BB but up there) but it's specifically what is essentially DCM/debt advisory, mainly corporate/investment grade debt advisory as opposed to restructuring or the like.
The salary is in the £65k region which is the same as the new analysts joining M&A etc. teams, and is higher than what the smaller shops in London pay (around £55k I believe).
I'm personally after exit opps to PE/HF/Corp Dev etc. since I'm unsure of what I want to do in future and want to keep my options open. From what I gather, this team isn't the place to be for that outcome and instead I'll be more restricted.
If you were in the same shoes and had the choice, would you take up an offer at a relatively no-name boutique firm (and likely lower salary) for an M&A position, or instead join the aforementioned debt team at a top bank?
(Note that I don't want to rely on internal mobility and don't wish to spend a year or more pigeonholed into something I'm not super keen on)
Any thoughts appreciated, thanks.
Do you know if this team models? Some debt advisory teams in EBs leave to model with sector teams.
Potential exit opps in private credit which can be very attractive and lucrative. I'd take this gig versus a no name nine times out of ten. I'm sure if it's an EB there will be internal mobility too
Hey thanks for your reply. So there are sector teams that handle the modelling for a given deal, this team just covers the debt financing side of things (investment grade) which from what I understand requires relatively little modelling work in comparison.
I mainly would like to be learning about a given business' operations, structure etc. as well as the life-cycle of a deal, and so I'm not sure whether I'm in the right place.
And internal mobility likely only occurs after a whole year or even two from what I've heard, which just seems a daunting prospect versus potentially going to a small firm but at least have M&A experience straight away (potentially lateral to a bigger bank later, not sure)
I just want to be in a place where the skills are most transferable and so I felt like M&A or a coverage group would be the better choice, but happy to be told otherwise or if giving debt advisory a shot is a good option regardless.
There's a good chance you might not have ever worked on either product before, so might be going off WSO prestige or what everyone else is talking about. Look further into the team and network to find out what their transactional experience looks like.
Wouldn't be uncommon to move to a sector team after being in Cap Markets, so always the option there. Anyway, you might end up enjoying it.
Good luck!! Go with your gut and what you'll enjoy the most
Thanks, and you're right in that I haven't worked on these products before. I'm sure there's an element of prestige in the back of my mind, but mostly my feeling is to do with having a transferable skillset.
The team has a fair amount of deal flow so it's not bad on that front, I'm just conscious that I wouldn't have the deal experience comparable to those that have spent a year in a sector team and I'd rather start there now and go all-in on the longer hours and taper back down the line, rather than still be looking to transfer into that a year or more from now.
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