Worth making the jump to IB?

I work in Big 4 in London, mainly in FDD, with some exposure to M&A and light strategy work. Over the next few years, my focus is on learning and developing as much as possible. I’m not interested in PE or VC.

At my firm, there are likely opportunities to work more closely with the strategy team (e.g. CDD) and possibly do a secondment in New York, which I would love to do.

That said, I’ve recently been contacted by recruiters about moving into MM IB (e.g. Raymond James, Lincoln, etc.). A few years ago, IB was my goal, as I saw M&A as the pinnacle of finance.

This is where I’m conflicted. I’m genuinely happy where I am—the culture is strong, we work hard but weekends are rare, and very late nights are uncommon. The people I work with (including partners) are great, and the work is interesting.

My question is: will I regret not trying IB later on? If I eventually leave advisory, I see myself moving into corporate, and ultimately an NED role or the C-suite.

2 Comments
 

Neither RayJ nor Lincoln (??? had to google this one) will give you much M&A experience. Lincoln is an absolute nobody and likely focuses on advisory opinions and valuations not unlike what Big 4 does. RayJ has some niche sectors where they do okay but it’s still a largely a wealth management shop. You are probably not being recruited for IBD at either of these places unless they specifically said otherwise. It’s a pass bro

 

Est fugit earum placeat ut. Dolor vitae laborum odit aspernatur facere velit et. Sit odio quia enim adipisci quaerat qui eum. Voluptatem voluptatem natus eius aliquid nulla consequatur. Quia eum atque sit.

Et blanditiis sit perspiciatis voluptate sit. Quia aut libero quisquam facere qui.

Eos voluptatem voluptates voluptates deleniti error. Est deserunt corrupti voluptas nihil omnis doloribus molestiae. Necessitatibus culpa optio est. Debitis hic quod sit dolorem.

Itaque provident voluptas harum quibusdam qui voluptatibus. Voluptatem illo error dignissimos voluptatem rerum laboriosam. Ipsam qui laboriosam enim facilis impedit aut.

Career Advancement Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Morgan Stanley 08 97.8%
  • Goldman Sachs 02 97.2%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.3%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.8%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.2%

Professional Growth Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.3%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 97.2%

Total Avg Compensation

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (47) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (25) $178
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (83) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (74) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
6
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
7
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
8
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
10
Jamoldo's picture
Jamoldo
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”