Philadelphia/South Jersey/Princeton: IB, M&A, HF, PE, VC etc Opportunities/Advice

Hi all,

New to WSO and hoping my first attempt at a thread isn't a total fail.

Reaching out to get some insight about the IB, VC, M&A, HF, PE, S&T, etc. scene in the Philadelphia/ South Jersey area. Oh and any insight into the scene in Princeton, NJ in the mentioned industries would also be helpful.

A quick background on myself for context:

I completed my undergrad from a Non-Target in the Philadelphia area in Spring of 2014 with a B.S. in Finance and Minor in Economics. Shortly thereafter I was hired by a large multinational investment bank. The bank employed me as an OTC Derivatives Documentation Analyst supporting FX and Equity sales and trading operations. The role was located at one of the banks offices in Delaware. I'd be lying if I said I knew what I wanted to do after graduating college. But I was a finance major and an investment bank called so I took the role. I found out very quickly that life in the back office of an IB was no place for me. The role really lacked any real intellectual stimulation and most days the role required zero grasp of the financial markets. And that became a disappointment very quickly considering I had developed a passion for the financial markets so quickly after starting at the bank. We had our hands on some really fascinating financial instruments and no one I worked with really ever cared to learn about them. I became fascinated by these very quickly and really took the time to educate myself on them. As unbearable as the role became I did get plenty out of it. My role: mundane. The scope of my role: massive. I was really exposed to different areas of the global markets side of the bank. Sales and Traders, Structured product teams, legal, compliance, etc. You name them, I interfaced with them. And with a little networking and some help from my manager who took an active interest in my future I was able to go shadow multiple salespeople and traders on the FX and Equity trading floors. And thats when my passion for the markets and these roles really took off. I really developed an interest and passion for the markets and the firms that operated within them.

Then, a few months out from the start of January 2016 the bank instituted a hiring freeze across the board both internally and externally. I had been approaching the 1 year mark at the firm that would allow me to move internally to other areas of the bank so that was a disappointment. No body was moving anywhere. I was stuck. To make matters worse there was no indication as to when the freeze would be lifted. While all this was going on my lifelong desire to travel had become an itch that had to be scratched. I slept on it for a couple more months and then in April of 2016 I decided it was time to go (Internal hiring freeze hadn't been lifted until mid April/early May) I gave a month and half notice of resignation and began planning my trip of a lifetime. After leaving the bank in June 2016 I spent 3 months with my girlfriend backpacking to 25+ cities across 12 countries in Europe. I came home in September of 2016 and pursued some opportunities within my personal network (most of them outside of the financial services realm). There were some interesting opportunities but none of them really grabbed me and intrigued me the way the markets do.

To wrap things up: Since November of 2016 I have been on the market looking for opportunities across the financial services realm. S&T, various IB activities, PE, VC, HF etc. And the struggle has been real. And as of late certain circumstances have arisen that make relocation to NYC pretty unfeasible so my search has become limited to the Philadelphia area.

I would like to achieve the following from this post:

-Learn of opportunities in the philadelphia/South Jersey/Princeton area in the above mentioned industries (not limited to those industries. just a starting point)
-Learn more about the firms operating in these spaces in this geographic locale. I know of SIG, Franklin Square, Janney Mont. Anybody on here from these firms want to connect and network? Anybody know of any other players in the region?
-Is there anything happening in the front offices of NYC thats ALSO happening down here in the Philly area?
-Any differences in approach to breaking into the industry in Philly as opposed to NY?
-Help out other Philly area kids looking to break in
-Learn, Network, Rinse and Repeat.

I greatly appreciate any feedback anyone can provide on the goings on in the Philadelphia area. Also, I am aware that there are a lot of opportunities in Delaware with IB's. I was part of it. However its all IT, Middle and Back office down there across all the banks and it just isn't of any interest. Anyone that understands the Delaware market differently PLEASE post. But please don't hit me with the "Check out JP Morgan in Delaware" line. Lets try and be specific for this thread.

Many Thanks All,

DOC