Reality Check of IB Hours
Currently an IB SA at a top BB. Also in a group with strong deal flow. I've been working 80+ hrs in office, same for my analysts. Not terrible, but not ideal. Was networking with other interns at smaller banks (Nomura, Mizuho) and they're pushing 60 hrs a week, and barely staffed on anything. I can see the difference in experience we'll get but don't ever see myself pursuing MF PE or HF. Can see myself being a career banker in the right situation. Wondering if it's worth stressing at a BB for 2 years, compared to chilling at a smaller bank with a decent reputation.
What have your SA hours been? Are there FT analysts at sub 80 hours a week?
Had mostly 60ish hours in my SA stint at a BB last year. Ended up moving away from IB to trading just because I liked markets more, but the FTs were usually 70-80 unless there was a big deal going on
Was it difficult switching to trading and what skill set does a trader need?
I noticed during my internship that some banks were limiting the no. of deals and the hours the interns worked every week. My bank staffed our interns on say 4-5 deals on avg. (most of which were live) and I know at another BB their interns were on 1-2 deals and barely doing anything. Thus, it might be a fallacy to see how much interns at other banks worked you know.
Also, a lot of time is spent on moonshot pitches or "biz. dev" that never goes anywhere at a lot of those international banks - so as an analyst you are still likely putting in a lot of hours, except now you'll barely get any meaningful deal flow. just my 2 cents.
Yes, the majority of IB analysts (even at BB/EB) average fewer than 80 hrs a week. If I were you I wouldn't be inclined to put up with that - you need to really value the step up in experience/prestige for it to be worth it
Vel nostrum nemo nam. Debitis eum ab fuga ut repellendus.
Nostrum incidunt temporibus alias ad dicta. Saepe est nihil doloremque eum autem ipsa aut. Aut nemo officia sunt veritatis animi. Officiis impedit repellat laboriosam beatae quis. Officia ea est rerum.
Unde voluptas aperiam sint. Quos molestiae molestias et et. Placeat labore eius eveniet velit praesentium eligendi. Possimus quis laboriosam sit officia ipsa. Veritatis commodi et aspernatur accusantium.
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...