UBS (Bouse of BBs) or Cain Brothers/Leerink, MM Boutiques?
Have offers from both, obviously UBS is largely the better name brand and is probably the right pick in the long term, but I have seen the recent UBS bonus numbers, or lack there of. (My offer isn't a top UBS group like LevFin) I know at the MM boutiques (also NYC) I would at least get good deal flow, better culture, and generally street pay, with a chance to lateral to an EB/BB healthcare group after 1-2 years with my experience to increase my exits from LMM/MM to UMM or better. How big really is gap? Thoughts?
How do you know you’ll be able to lateral after 1-2 years?
Good point, I didn’t mean to come across as entitled to think anything is guaranteed in banking, more so meant that I would have good deal flow across a good industry like healthcare which would leave options open going forward
If it’s Healthcare, for sure Leerick
Im at an EN would more likely hire an analyst with 3-4 closed deals from a MM, than one from UbS who struggles to even know what steps a typical deal follows
EN? Typo for "EB" or is there a new acronym I need to know about.
Probably fat finger / typo since N is next to the B key
I rather get paid more at a MM
Yeah never UBs, it’s worse than MM and worse than standard corp fin roles
Eww no not UBS
I’m generally more impressed with MM guys than the UBS bankers I meet. Most of them just aren’t that sharp
The problem with lateraling after 1-2 years logic is 1) will be depedent on lateral market (which you cannot control), 2) you really only have ~2-3 years as junior before it becomes very hard to leave for PE as an associate, and usually you really have to lateral in first-year as nobody cares if you have spent 5-6 months on the desk at a BB. You should take UBS unless you are in ECM or DCM. UBS still has MM/UMM exits. MF exits are a tough ask no matter where at just given # of MF seats vs. people pursuing those roles.
Someone earlier in the year posted UBS exits and was quite shocked at how good they are relative to actual leauge tables. Think decent number of UMM's from UBS this past year, so you can get pretty solid exits from UBS if you are a top bucket analyst without having to lateral.
Is moving to PE that hard if you don’t do it on-cycle?
Just less seats. It's not just the lack of on-cycle, but more so the recruiting in the period right after on-cycle. Within the first year most seats are probably gone for firms with a multi-billion fund size. There will still be spots, but just less and a lot more competition from all the people who didn't get an offer (again back to the point about more people at top banks vs. number of seats at multi-billion fund size)
I was under the impression analysts have to wait atleast one year to lateral considering most job descriptions require that? If youre not satisfief with bank/group is it possible to lateral earlier? Im trying to maximize for pe exits
Yes you would typically lateral in year 1 and then do off-cycle recruiting. Lateraling before year 1 is uncommon and mildly a red flag as it shows you not being able to hack it at your first job for even a year period. There are still large PE seats left and/or firms that are looking to add headcount, just a more compettiive and harder proces than on-cycle because expectations are highter, processes are longer, and there are less spots. It used to be much easier in 2020-21 during COVID boom, but lateral market has waned significantly from then.
I’d pick Leerick
Accepting a UBS offer is like drinking rat poison. Tastes a little sweet at first, then you realize too late it was never meant to end well.
It’s actually more like putting your pecker in a mousetrap and snapping it shut for 18 hours straight a day
Ubs is hell
Why would anyone want to go to a bank (UBS) that is all over the Epstein files and banked Maxwell after Epstein got arrested
I too regret joining UBS
I love ubs
Said Marco to his useless cronies
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Have tried posting a comment here a couple times but keeps being automatically taken down within a second so included my comment below as a picture.
^Additionally, I've included below a link to the data-driven rankings I put together in the biotech and broader healthcare space with some useful commentary, as well as recent links I was able to find about the state of Leerink's and Cain's group in case you're having trouble finding it.
[Early 2026] The Definitive and Data-Driven Healthcare IB Group Rankings (Biopharma + Broader HC) | Wall Street Oasis
Cain Brothers in 2026? | Wall Street Oasis
Leerink Partners Culture? | Wall Street Oasis
Thanks a lot, any thoughts on the feasibility on what I said above about lateraling to a bigger banking platform later on? I know both MM banks have good MM/LMM exits from a buy side view.
^Really depends on which group your Leerink offer is for. If you’re an analyst within the Leerink biotech team, the feasibility of lateraling to a top BB (Goldman) or a better EB platform (Centerview/Dyal) will be very high, since you’ll be lead-left on a lot of financings (which BBs care about) and get solid M&A experience (which BBs/EBs both care about). That said, buyside exits tend to skew more toward VC than PE.
However, if you’re an analyst on the Leerink healthcare services team, the feasibility of lateraling to an EB/BB platform will likely be lower than Cain, since deal flow seems slower. At the end of the day, deal reps are what really matter when lateraling or exiting, and if you’re in a group with very low deal flow, that’ll negatively impact the experience you gain and limit exit opportunities.
I’d use the following decision logic:
If your offer is in Leerink biotech -> take the offer and either stay, exit to the buyside, or if you’re really trying to lateral, I’d mainly consider Goldman/Centerview/Dyal.
If your offer is in Leerink healthcare services -> take the Cain offer and use that time to try to lateral to a decent BB or EB
If your offer is a generalist offer at Leerink -> I’d network to see what the process is like to get placed into biotech full-time. If it’s really competitive but you believe in your ability to stand out among your intern class and get placed into biotech, then take the Leerink generalist offer. If not, I’d take the Cain offer, since I think that’s better than ending up in Leerink’s services team.
We don't have a generalist program in NYC, Boston, or San Francisco. The Analyst and Summer Analyst programs are siloed into dedicated biopharma and healthcare services/MD&D junior teams. There has been some talk about siloing MD&D to have its own junior team distinct from healthcare services but not sure if it’s going to happen. The only office that kinda has a generalist program is our Charlotte office which has analysts/associates working on either spec pharma or healthcare services.
Congrats on UBS!
Certain groups at UBS still place if you want it (worked for me) albeit it is likely easier from other shops
Strongly recc NOT working at UBS
Would not touch UBS with a 10ft pole.
Cain very strong healthcare. Leerink very strong biotech. If it’s for those areas at the respective firm, go based on interest. If it’s for healthcare for both, I’d do Cain
Thoughts on what I said above about lateral opportunities to BB/EB healthcare groups? I would think having good deal flow in a specified industry would help greatly.
Avoid UBS at all costs. Worst perfoming bank by a mile
😟😟😟
hmm a bulge bracket or two places ive literally never heard of, tough choice
Have seen a lot of turnover in Cain Brothers (possibly layoffs?). As an outsider, it looks like a shadow of its former self.
Some solid PE exits for analysts though.
In what sense? Layoffs can be a bad sign but it looks like they are still churning out many different deals with just a quick website glance.
Looks like their deal flow has picked up at the end of last year so I could be wrong.
Leerink by a mile if Biopharma, HCST is decent
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