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I'd also be interested in anyone has any definitive insights.
After doing research on my own, I think the common answer is that it can really vary widely based on fund and location. Some firms will comp pretty close to other normal MM firms, others will be much lower. The mix of base + bonus can also vary depending on firm. There isn't really a definitive range for small PE firms.
I could give general ranges for US, but I have no idea how it would differ in Europe.
Edit:
I'll add the rough ranges I've seen for the US. The base usually in the 70-100ish type range for base and then bonus can vary widely. I'd say the all in comp range(not including carry/coinvest) is probably 120k - 200k anything above that and the salaries start to look like usually middle market funds.
Carry and coinvest are rare, but sometimes small firms will grant carry instead of additional salary.
I am also interested in this as well. I would like to get more information on associate comp in the US of a firm with ~$250-300m.
At what point can you expect to get carry?
In Canada, Toronto, at a start up P/E fund analysts at my firm make around 50-60k base plus commission, as we operate on a different sort of p/e dynamic where we are in our investments for the long run and dont buy and flip unless approached with a lucrative offer, keep in mind we have a fairly small portfolio as we are only a few years running
Based on two offers from small PE funds, sub-$500mm AUM. $90k base +50% bonus Eastern US based fund. Western US growth equity start up shop $85k base + 50% bonus + carry. Both are located in large metro areas.
These are way below street. Not sure how it would compare in europe though.
Thanks for the input.
These numbers seems a bit low as I know that some London mid/semi large PE funds in Europe pays about 100% in bonus.
50% bonus is for me a bit too low...I currently work in TS and get a bonus in the range 30-35% of my base in bonus.
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