“My mentoring session with Andre was extremely valuable and gave me the clarity and direction I needed at an important stage of my application journey. He was kind, approachable, and generous with his time, creating an atmosphere in which I felt comfortable sharing my experiences, asking questions, and discussing my doubts openly.
One of the most helpful aspects of our conversation was his guidance on how to organize and communicate my personal story. Andre helped me understand how to connect different experiences into a coherent narrative, identify the elements that matter most, and explain their significance more clearly. His perspective was fundamental in helping me see how to present my background with greater confidence, purpose, and authenticity.
I particularly appreciated his advice on what to avoid. He helped me recognize that including every detail does not necessarily make a story stronger, and that being selective can make a message much more effective. Our discussion gave me a clearer understanding of how to avoid unnecessary repetition, keep my narrative focused, and ensure that each part contributes something meaningful to the overall application.
Andre also provided valuable guidance on how to organize the application process itself. He helped me think more clearly about priorities, how to approach the different components, and how to make the work feel more manageable. Having a clearer structure has made a difference to my mindset: instead of seeing the applications as one overwhelming task, I now feel better equipped to approach them through specific, achievable steps.
Another important takeaway was his advice on how to use the coming days effectively. Our conversation helped me understand where to focus my energy, which tasks deserve immediate attention, and how to establish a realistic plan. I left the session with a stronger sense of direction and a better understanding of how to balance thoughtful preparation with consistent progress.
What made the experience positive was the combination of practical guidance and encouragement. Andre offered suggestions in a considerate and constructive way, helping me reflect on my choices while also making me feel supported. His kindness made it easier to engage honestly with the process and to see areas for improvement as opportunities to strengthen my applications.
Overall, this session was fundamental in helping me understand both what I want to communicate and how to move forward. I now have a clearer approach to telling my story, organizing my applications, avoiding common mistakes, and planning the next few days with intention.
I am very grateful for Andre’s support and for the care he brought to our conversation. His advice gave me useful tools, renewed confidence, and a more focused approach to the work ahead. I would highly recommend a session with him to anyone seeking thoughtful guidance, practical direction, and a supportive space to develop their application narrative. The session helped me turn uncertainty into a clearer plan, and I feel much more prepared to make the most of the time ahead and present my experiences in a meaningful and convincing way.”
Don’t be short-sighted.
Yes not paying taxes are great but ultimately HK is not a place you want to be in if you don’t speak an asian language and/or chinese/east asian. Yes there are quite a few expats still but as the years go by and CCP take over Hk more you’ll see less and less expats (don’t want to get political).
Also PE firms even if you come from top BBs don’t hire from HK (at least NA offices) they’ll hire directly from your NYC/SF/LA/Toronto counterparts. Of course if you want to work for them in HK thats possible but then once again if you want any level of success you need to speak an asian language + look the part
Can you elaborate on hiring from Toronto offices? I thought exit opps were fairly difficult to obtain if you're applying from a regional office in Canada as opposed to NYC/SF BBs/EBs. Are exits from HK into NA PE really that bad?
From Toronto you’ll be working at the toronto office for PE not nyc/la/sf.
Never seen anyone from HK during my PE interviews (MF/UMM) and my firm that I will be joining shortly has 0 that worked in Asia IB (UMM)
Is there any way to get to the US from Toronto? Is it easy to go from BB in Toronto to BB in USA (for example GS Toronto -> GS NYC)
The first comment pretty much summarizes what I would say as well. You shouldn’t be making any early career decisions based on your tax situation. I would focus on where you think you would get the best learning experience as an analyst and where you potentially see yourself after banking.
What about for career banking? For career bankers, from a pure financial perspective (assuming they find all other aspects equal - lifestyle, etc) wouldn't it make sense for those who have the chance to move to HK earn more? Just wasn't sure why HK isn't targeted as much for most career bankers. It's just that as pay scales up in the higher levels, the taxed income seems to scale significantly as well. Isn't there a significant difference between $1MM taxed at 13-15% compared to 50%+?
I guess I should rephrase my last line as "where you see your career going", wasn't trying to limit the range of possibilities to only exit opportunities.
I'm not sure HK isn't "targeted as much". It's just that, like other comments have mentioned, the HK banking market requires a different set of skills/traits, i.e. significant connections, fluency in Mandarin, cultural familiarity, etc. People who have those things are definitely saturating the group targeting career banking in HK. And similarly, while it would be nice to only think about things from a pure financial perspective, you can't realistically separate the other aspects of life from career decisions.
Given that WSO is fairly American-focused (and maybe European-focused to a lesser extent), I would say it isn't a good reference if you're trying to gauge the interest in HK banking. Banking in HK is a huge industry by all measures and there are hundreds of thousands of students that are gunning for those roles. Two very large groups that come to mind are local Chinese students at top universities in the Mainland and Chinese students at top European universities (Oxbridge, LSE) looking to come back to Asia after university.
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