Reputation of BAML

rufioloveIf you are thinking that you can afford to be selective with regard to which institutions you apply to, you cant. Any bulge bracket, middle market, or established boutique investment bank that would be willing to extend you an offer is a firm worth considering, and anyone who participates in prestige-whoring is clearly not giving an opinion worth noting. The firm has a solid reputation particularly in their equity and debt financing platforms (Lev Fin crushes it). It may not be as strong a performer in Global M&A up to this point because legacy BofA did not have as strong of a global presence as Merrill did, but they have been moving up the league tables notwithstanding. Goldman, Lazard, MS, and other Elite boutiques garner a stronger market share with respect to M&A, but in terms of volume and fees the firm has substantial deal flow. You could basically say that financings are their bread and butter, with JPM being a major competitor on that front. But definitely don't have an elitist attitude about where you work because you'll get great experience everywhere. Some groups at BAML are better than their counterparts at MS/JPM/GS, while others are not as strong. Regardless, you'll be doing about the same thing wherever you go so be sure to check your attitude at the door.

great info..thanks..yeah, definitely don't want to get picky

rufioloveIf you are thinking that you can afford to be selective with regard to which institutions you apply to, you cant. Any bulge bracket, middle market, or established boutique investment bank that would be willing to extend you an offer is a firm worth considering, and anyone who participates in prestige-whoring is clearly not giving an opinion worth noting. The firm has a solid reputation particularly in their equity and debt financing platforms (Lev Fin crushes it). It may not be as strong a performer in Global M&A up to this point because legacy BofA did not have as strong of a global presence as Merrill did, but they have been moving up the league tables notwithstanding. Goldman, Lazard, MS, and other Elite boutiques garner a stronger market share with respect to M&A, but in terms of volume and fees the firm has substantial deal flow. You could basically say that financings are their bread and butter, with JPM being a major competitor on that front. But definitely don't have an elitist attitude about where you work because you'll get great experience everywhere. Some groups at BAML are better than their counterparts at MS/JPM/GS, while others are not as strong. Regardless, you'll be doing about the same thing wherever you go so be sure to check your attitude at the door.

turtlesIf you get an offer, take it. Pretty chill culture from what I've heard and they pay well. Buddy of mine recently signed S&T there and will make a combined 100k-160k in his first year

That's a huge range and in line with street compensation... they pay the same as all other banks...

SolidarityA lot of junior analysts I knew took any offer essentially over Bank of America (UBS, BMO, consulting at Monitor, etc) because it's so synonymous with ATM's and whatnot. I know some groups are killing it, but a lot of it about perception.

SolidarityJust my gut, but I'm pretty pessimistic about BAML's long-term prospects. A lot of the legacy Merrill people jumped ship and it will undergo a lot of the Citi/Salomon and JPM/Chase drama before everything is sorted out. Pre-Merrill BAC was absolutely atrocious, and even now, it rarely wins lead mandates but is always stuck with the financing... not very exciting prospects in the long run

Eventually the Merrill guys will take over but the problem is just weak brand equity and the "Bank of America" name. A lot of junior analysts I knew took any offer essentially over Bank of America (UBS, BMO, consulting at Monitor, etc) because it's so synonymous with ATM's and whatnot. I know some groups are killing it, but a lot of it about perception.

There is so much inaccuracy in this post that I wouldn't know what to address first. For any of the younger kids on this forum, definitely disregard the above. I have several friends who did their 2 year stint and got gigs at Providence, TPG, Welsh Carson, Cerberus etc... The above interpretation of the firm as a whole and the statement that it cannot win mandates is ludicrous, as it did some landmark M&A deals last year, it simply doesn't have the market share that some of the other shops have.

SolidarityA lot of junior analysts I knew took any offer essentially over Bank of America (UBS, BMO, consulting at Monitor, etc) because it's so synonymous with ATM's and whatnot. I know some groups are killing it, but a lot of it about perception.

People who fear others mistaking the fact that they actually work at an investment bank rather than at the teller booth because the name is synonymous with ATMs seriously need to get their ego checked.

I wonder if anybody put off Citi because its so synonymous with the ATMs. Or any other IB that has a similar name for its commercial banking arm.. Because that's a really damn funny reason to disregard an offer.

firefighterBaml > ghl/evr/laz in terms of recognition by people outside finance and by product exposure. If you're not dead set on pe or hf there's slot to be said for starting at a blue chip name

Just my 2 cents. College student but that's my perspective

I don't think working at BAML would put you at any disadvantage if you wanted to eventually move into PE or HF. Sure, it doesn't have the notoriety of GS TMT or any of the other major groups that supposedly give PE recruiters crazy pants, but there are about 1,000 other banks and MMs that don't either and somehow someone from those firms will end up at KKR eventually.

firefighterArguing with ekud is like running in the special olympics, even if you win you're still retarded

Haha if I had SB you'd get the +1.

firefighterArguing with ekud is like running in the special olympics, even if you win you're still retarded

Thats great!