From entrepreneurship to finance

Hello dear monkeys,

Graduated from a BS in Europe and after two successful entrepreneurial experiences (a very niche market then a small RE company focusing on opportunistic deals), I would like to pivot and if possible in the US.

Some would wonder why the hassle but even though I love being an entrepreneur, I am not confortable with staying in RE. I've been able to raise money and I am sick of micromanaging and trying to be CEO, COO and CMO. I am thinking about work all the time which is mentally draining and can work up to 80 hours per week. On top of that, I don't have the benefits you can think of such as learning from others, working within a team, with smart people and on more ambitious projects.

Thanks to my experiences, I know I am more inclined towards deals and investment. A role at a VC or a startup studio would be great but must be too much difficult to break in, that's why I am thinking of tech M&A (I code from time to time and I developed 3 apps) at a LMM or MM boutique. I could stay in RE doing more deals and doing fine (but not great) financially speaking but this industry tends to be boring, it just doesn't pick my mind as I would like to and it's much less strategic than working on/with companies. Besides, RE deals on the side are largely feasible.

As many others on this forum, I followed some courses (Training the Street, WSP), read interview guides throughly while completing many case studies which make me believe that I can have a shot during interviews.

The issue is getting ones and I know I am not in the best place comparing to US graduates so I am thinking of starting cold emailing but before that I would like to know if these kind of boutiques could be interested in having an off cycle trainee through a J-1 visa, which is not a visa sponsored by employers hence costs nothing. I am also thinking about 2 other solutions that you can find below.

So basically these are my choices :

• Going for a MBA as I have a deferred admission from a top 12-15 but I might try to aim for higher (3.3 gpa, 740 GMAT, got straight A at math courses from a reputable uni, great ECs, coming from a very very underrepresented minority ethnicity hence talking an endangered language)
• Pivoting without the need of doing an MBA to a M&A boutique in the US and working my way up
• Doing a deal advisory internship in Europe (waiting for an offer) to increase my chances for a M&A traineeship in the US

Thanks in advance for anyone who could share some ideas and advices.