Is Carlyle like the UBS of PE?
I've recently heard that Carlyle has been dropping in terms of prestige and deal quality
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Congrats on UBS!
No one is as bad as UBS
Carlyle gets this comparison a lot but it's not really fair. They're a top-tier megafund by AUM and deal volume — the platform is massive and the deal flow is real. Where the reputation takes a hit is on culture and hours relative to peers. Some groups are known for grinding associates harder than comparable seats at KKR or Apollo, and the comp hasn't always kept pace with the top of the street. But the exit opps are still elite, the brand still opens every door, and the quality of deals you'll see is institutional. It's more about finding the right group within Carlyle than judging the whole platform.
Bruh you’re forgetting that returns have also been absolutely booty
Your comment on experience is so funny to me - the people I know who went to Carlyle after banking had by far the worst experiences of any of my friends, and I know several people who went to KKR and Apollo who had very good experiences (while historically WSO would say those would be bad).
But yea I agree Carlyle is still a great firm and gives you great experience that you can use to go to bschool or other roles. I would just avoid it at all costs as the culture sounds like a literal living hell.
Does their CEO look like the head of UBS?
Carlyle comp is literally below a mid bucket BB associate and way under a top EB associate. I think a top Carlyle associate in a group that isn’t underperforming (lol) is like $340K, with same hours + more stressful work.
The returns of the fund is fucking horseshit too.
It seems like they have had relatively large associate classes which maybe explains that in part, any idea on VP+ cash comp relative to other peer firms?
From what I heard internally, and pls take with a grain of salt, things went downhill after Glenn Youngkin and Peter Clare left.
In the analogy where UBS is the legacy BB's and Carlyle is the legacy MF's, yes. UBS once had titans with top performance like Ken Moelis and Blair Effron pre GFC, just as Carlyle was a top PE shop pre GFC.
Founder of Carlyle vs founder of UBS (according to Wikipedia click throughs)
Maybe this will put the debate to rest 🤝
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