Banking > PE?
background - 2-3 years in banking, 3-4 years in pe now.
feel like over time my priorities have increasingly shifted towards near term (~next 5-10 years) cash compensation rather than making tens of millions in my 50s through pe carry. with more pe funds being raised and the inevitable compression of returns on the buyside, any thoughts on whether it makes more sense to just stay in banking instead? think we're also reaching the end of the cycle where most teams are cutting back on headcount and having trouble raising new funds, so upward mobility beyond sr asso / vp feels like a much lower probability in pe.
tldr thinking about switching back to banking after pe. thoughts?
These are two very different jobs. The same person who succeeds at one doesn’t necessarily succeed at the other.
Figure out which one you actually like better and do that.
I would personally work for a PE fund or some type of principal investing role even if it was a meaningful comp discount to banking because it’s a better fit (for me)
people say this but honestly i don't buy the bit that much. not saying there aren't differences at all (ib is more salesy, pe requires more analytical skills) but i don't think there's necessarily a filter that the same person couldn't do well in both
Completely agreed. Nowadays PE is just about deal-making. If you are optimizing for medium-term comp., banking makes more sense.
Former PE associate here → went back to banking but was much more targeted in selecting a MM M&A role that primarily services PE. I dug hard for 6 months and thought about how long it would take to actually receive carry checks, probability of promotions, and likely needing to go to business school. Not for me. Would rather have the (materially) higher cash comp now. Not sure I'll even be in finance 5 years from now. Why be much more stressed, work arguably harder with similar hours to be paid less? PE is commoditized, just as banking is.
Do you think doing PE for 2 years was worth it before switching back or would you just stay in banking if you had to do it again?
bump ^
bump
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