Anyone got any insights into the type of work, exits and growth opportunities that come from debt advisory at a LDN EB e.g. PWP / HL / Laz?
Would appreciate any insights into the work and learning as I feel it's quite dead end from what I'm reading online so far with just supporting client relations and interactions...
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Hours would be interesting to hear as well
Bump - curious if anyone can shed any light on this - if similar to DCM you'd be good but if similar to RX at an EB could be quite tough and intense
Definitely more on the M&A/RX end of the spectrum than DCM. DCM work is purely marked based and therefore folks work market hours - debt advisory teams usually work on sponsor related transactions as advisors and have not much to do with public debt markets but face the same tight deadlines as in M&A/RX
Bump
Not at an EB but in a similar role at a competitor. Broadly speaking competitive landscape is larger independent shops, the likes of A&M/FTI/Alix and the B4 (mainly Deloitte)
I’ll probably move back to the lending/investing side long term. Working on a lot of transactions, from bank lending to some very hairy stuff (mezz etc) has been really valuable to me.
Hours are tough, but that’s the nature of advisory (if not a highly specialist role). At the right shop, you will probably learn a lot more than an average lev fin team (due to internal bank admin/process, waiting on approvals etc)
Let me know if any specific questions
Typical tasks for me are modelling, lender calls, client calls, CIM writing, DD review etc. At least in my experience the divergence from a lending role suddenly kicks in at director+ (in advisory, you become a salesperson)
Detailed credit analysis is still needed to a) figure out what types of financing could viably be raised, and how suitable it is for the business, and b) marketing materials / pre-empt lender diligence
Downsides are that because all you can offer is fast advice rather than capital, you are either given a (short-fuse) timeline or just working hard to deliver client value.
Managing outreach, diligence etc with a large group of potential lenders can be a bit arduous. This is rare though, as a targeted market approach is part of the expertise paid for - not heard of the EB’s doing this, but if you hear that it’s probably a signal to avoid (search up Marlborough Partners)
Generally speaking, I don’t think it’s a dead end role at all. A good team will be doing work that’s interesting, so reassess regularly and move if not the case
Be prepared to work hard, but you should always be learning something new not just paper pushing on a lot of ‘spray and pray’ outreach approaches. Again, recognise and avoid asap (unlikely at an EB)
It’s a good place to learn about psychology / optics too. The MD’s are quite different to those who seem to be successful on the lending side.
I’d recommend aiming to work on sponsored / stressed deals rather than corporate (refinancing an RCF for 25bps cheaper isn’t so interesting). Exception is Rothschild who have a very strong corporate team.
What do you think about the DA market in London in general (best firms, compensation, exits,…)? Is it an attractive field to start out of undergrad? You said that the learnings in DA are probably better than in LevFin, but how would you compare it to M&A or Coverage?
Additionally I‘m wondering if investment banks like EVR/HL/Roths etc. actually compete against Big4/A&M/FTI or if the latter cover only smaller or less complex situations?
Sorry response messed up. Will come back on this
Congrats on HL!
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