Advice on transitioning to infra at a MENA SWF / PE fund
Hi all,
I'm seeking advice regarding a future career transition and would appreciate your insights, particularly given my non-typical path between banking and foreign policy.
Background: I have close to 5 years of experience, starting with 2 years as an analyst (capital markets) at a BB. Later, I returned to MENA foreign policy at a ministry for 2 years, after having had a first internship in this area prior to banking. I have recently received an offer at a major IFI in the MENA region, covering infrastructure projects (origination/business development, rather than execution).
Goal: At some point, I'm aiming to transition to a MENA SWF or PE fund covering infrastructure/project finance in the MENA region. Ideally at the associate level.
I'm wondering whether limited exposure to financial modeling and project finance (to date) would be a major drawback? How realistic is it to transition from an IFI to a SWF / PE fund?
I'd appreciate any insights, advice, or experiences you could share. What steps can I take to maximize the likelihood of such a transition?
Thank you for your time.
Very unlikely given how light you are on the Excel/model front... if your analyst stint had been in classic IB I'd say maybe, but it doesn't seem like you have the technical background required. Infra is one of the most model-heavy areas of PE, you would be expected to come in and run complex models right away. These funds don't have the capacity to teach someone at the ASO/VP level how to model.
If you are set on making this transition I would aim for IB instead of the role you're considering. 18 months or 2 years in an infra or project finance group will place well into what you're looking for, but you need to pick up some model reps to even be considered for these roles.
Thanks a lot, much appreciated!
As an alternative to IB, would lateraling internally to a more PF model-intensive team within the same IFI increase chances? As mentioned, the offer is on the business development side, but there also are execution teams which do the full modeling/structuring work.
In your experience, are you aware of any moves IFI —> SWF/PE in the infra space?
Still pretty unlikely - again if you had prior IB experience that might give you some cover, but you won't learn a corporate/asset buyout model or transaction structuring at an IFI. It's a bit closer than the biz dev job, but still not comparable to IB in reps, model depth, breath of industry/client knowledge etc. You just won't be competitive in interviews where other candidates are talking about running the model and all diligence on a large infra buyout deal.
PE/SWF is a highly coveted exit and they have lots of applicants - they have too many qualified applications with highly relevant modeling experience to take someone whose experience is only tangential
Makes a lot of sense - thanks for the feedback
Ad harum aut dignissimos occaecati praesentium. Ratione praesentium placeat aperiam laboriosam ipsam. Aut aut ratione repellat non sunt laborum. Corporis possimus necessitatibus id velit quia. Et harum mollitia ut in dicta doloremque dolores.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...