Staying in IB worth it?

Is it worth it to leave IB?

The hours are rough but the pay is good and compared to PE there's not a lot of skin in the game.

If I were to go to PE, it would be to a LMM / MM shop that focuses on value... so it's not like my hours would be much better.

I understand all the draws of PE and carry being the main one but if I were to assume carry never materializes (poor fund performance, I get canned, have to be at fund a long time, etc) then the desirability goes out the door. Seems like once you remove the long-shot of carry, comp compared to IB is significantly lower.

I'm in a good MM group with strong deal flow and has built a reputation in which the deal flow isn't going anywhere.

I'd rather stay in IB, grind it out, save the bonuses and then jump to something super chill and then retire early.

Am I thinking about this wrong?

7 Comments
 

I'll touch on one thing that maybe this forum has not touched on nearly as recently is stability. Sure returns might be going down, and carry will probably not be as bountiful for my generation, but I do think from a stability standpoint if you can get your foot in the door with a good PE shop, you will have some good stability. 

In banking, I always found there to be more sharp elbows and a lot less predictability of staying around. Even in groups that were "preforming well". One market downturn and you might find your bank trying to lean out. Which, often puts Associates, VPs and Directors at highest risk for being cut or low bonus allocation. I am sure the same thing happens in PE, but if you can get over the associate hump stability seems to be more present for those that want to stay. 

 

Two things:  

1. I address the associate hump in the last sentence. Arguably, Associates can be easily replaced, and will be replaced if the firm does not feel up to snuff. But, IF you look at say a Senior Associate+ roles It seems there is more stability in PE

2. I have not worked at a MF, but I imagine it is much worse then banking at the associate level. 

 
Most Helpful

IF you are agnostic towards being an investor AND can stand banking/advisory in general (and don't ask yourself existential questions like - what am I doing with my life - not a judgmental statement but some people are more prone to this kind of thinking than others) - then yes - IB is potentially a good option. Here's a few points to explain why:

  • Lifestyle SUCKS at the junior levels of banking (or PE) for that matter - but it scales rapidly down as you get more senior. By the time you have an ED, in many cases you will have a VP, an Associate or two, an analyst or two, and a team in Mumbai working for you - all of whom will devote 24/7 to creating good work product - that kind of leverage doesn't exist in PE to the same degree 
  • Stability - (1) PE is not stable anymore - see the 10 other threads on the front page. (2) Banking gigs can be more stable despite the industry overall being a bit more cyclical - here's why. There's more "fat" in banking. At every level - associate, VP, ED - there are 10s if not dozens of each title in each group. Now let's say there's a downturn - are they going to cut ED's? Absolutely - but if there are 10 - and they cut 5, they are still keeping 5. The trick is to be above-average. If you happen to be top-bucket - you are basically lay-off proof. Now compare this to PE - even at large UMM/MFs - there might literally only be 2-3 principals aligned with each sector. Being top 3 out of 10 (banking) is FAR easier than being top 1 out of 3 in PE - not only numerically, but also the average caliber of competition is far higher in PE as you go up. 
  • It's a numbers game - making MD in IBD is basically a combination of (i) choosing to stock around long enough, (ii) being pretty good - not necessarily amazing - at your job, (iii) and finding a few people that will vouch for you. There are literally thousands of investment banking MDs that churn regularly. Now compare that to PE - There are probably 200-300 Partners in aggregate at top ~30 UMM/MFs, with hundreds more as principal / VPs waiting behind in an industry that doesn't churn as much at the partner level because they are private partnership - can't fire you if you are literally a part owner of the firm. So on average, if you are a hard-working, smart, commercial person who can bear to stay in finance for 15-years - your chances of making an IBD MD is pretty good. Your chances of making a UMM/MF partner are exceptionally low. 

TLDR - if your goal is to literally speed-run to a financial safety-net and then chill by your mid-late 30s - hard to beat IBD. But side note - "retire early" sounds good in practice but in reality many people fall into depression once they get there - because then stare into the void of the next 50-70 years wondering wtf to do with your life. I would suggest as an alternative at least thinking about a career that fundamentally interests you - then you get to basically work and play for the next however long you choose to work 

 

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