Good morning to all,
I am open to give back to the community by answering (most of) questions about PE.
About myself, ending my second year as an investment analyst at a MM Spanish PE. Prior to this I was an off-cycle analyst while finishing my master's degree in industrial engineering. Did some internships in industrial companies and consulting.
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Comments (22)
Hi gedemug, whoops, looks like nobody chimed in here.... maybe one of these discussions below is relevant:
I hope those threads give you a bit more insight.
Hey, thanks for doing this!
I'm currently working as a PE analyst ( hopefully soon to be associate) in Portugal, and would eventually like to move to Spain.
I've been following quite some funds in Spain (portobello, sherpa, etc), and night have some questions:
1) I know that many of these funds operate in all Iberia. Would you think a Portuguese speaker could break into PE in Spain? My Spanish knowledge is intermediate, meaning I can fully understand but I have a rather basic level when it comes to maintaining a conversation.
2) How's compensation like? As a first year associate in Portugal I can expect to make around 75-85k all in. Are salaries in Spain for MM in line with these?
Thank you once again for your help!
Hi jjmnj!
Totally correct, usually Spanish PE fund have an investment area that covers iberia (Spain + Portugal). However, apart from Sherpa I think that most of MM PE only do 1 investment (2 max) per fund. Most of your coverage/origination will be within Spanish companies and for that it will be helpfull to improve your Spanish.
Compensation should be similar, maybe a little bit higher. This depends if your firm gives you share of the carry or not.
At the end: A + B + C = aprox the same in all firms. Therefore higher annual comp if not receive carry but less exposed to long-term upside.
A: annual base salary; B: annual bonus; C: annualization of carry
Hope this helps
Thanks OP. Where's most of the action in Spain, Madrid or Barcelona? Which is the most difficult region to do business in? Most militant or violent unions? Who's the best team to partner with for distressed industrial deals?
Thanks!
Most PE firms are based in Madrid or Barcelona, though Barcelona tends to be more VC focused. Therefore, in terms of PE, I would suggest Madrid is more active.
Yeah, totally correct, Madrid is more active in PE and could potentially serve as a hub for LaTam transactions.
Hi OP!
I'm an MSc in Finance graduate starting an off-cycle internship at a MM boutique in Madrid (mostly M&A). I expect to become a FT analyst after 6 months. What is the average salary for first year analysts in Madrid? I can't really find any info on this. Is there a big difference between BBs and boutiques? I guess the BBs only have regional offices in Madrid.. whereas working for a boutique like mine would enable me to gain more deal exposure. What's your take on this?
ibordie88:
Fisrt years analysts in M&A should expect 35-55k€ base salary. Range may vary between MM and BB boutiques.
I agree, MM boutiques will certainly give you more deal exposure.
The friends I know working at some of the BBs in Madrid have a 65k EUR base as A1, not 55k...
For MM PE in Madrid if you come from a MM IB Boutique you will compete against Big4 peers, the deal exposure is not that important as the brand name when it comes to getting opportunities in such a small and competitive world (You will also find MBB consultants trying to make their way in, so there´s a huge competition for decent funds, making the branding a very important thing. Also large deals usually bring complexity and more workstreams that can lead to better exits, and normally in this market those are covered by BBs, sometimes EBs and local banks such as BBVA or Santander)
If you try to go for a UMM / MF you will have a big trouble to recruit if you dont come from a EB/BB so try to think about what exit opps you are looking for and try to make a move if needed (if you are not dead-set on UM/MF you should be fine for LMM)
Interested in knowing the candidate they're looking for. I'm starting a MSc in Finance this year and I'm looking to work in IB or PE in Madrid.
It's very different.
If you don't have previous experience, landing a job in IB should be easier. PE internships should also be accesible.
PE recruiting in Spain is a shadow market, only accesible through network or headhunters. Referrals are highly recomended.
Are there any decent size funds in Barcelona? If so which ones? How common is English spoken in PE firms in Spain? Would love to live and work in Spain some day.
There are some but quite small and you will have a real pay cut.
Spanish is needed as most are just analyzing the Iberia market, would be a wise choice to start learning Spanish if this is your goal
Not many. I know that Miura (MM) and Carlyle (big fund) are based in Barcelona. In general terms, Barcelona is more VC focused.
If you want to work in Spain, Spanish is a must (at least in MM). Big funds might consider candidates with limited Spanish level
Thanks for the AMA, very helpful
I would like to ask what you think is the best way of approaching PE recruitment in Spain as an IB associate at a BB in London. How doea it usually work?
How common is it that the major European funds (Advent, Civen etc..) recruit for their Spanish office?
Many thanks!
Rotation in PE is very low. I would suggest working along recruiters/headhunters and trying to network directly with people in your target PE funds
Cinven has 6 people at their Madrid´s office if I am not wrong, same for Advent. This year Cinven hired an analyst and expanded a little bit the office, but still they are very small, and most of them are seniors, so expect no turnover or very little.
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Appreciate you doing this.
I'd like to ask you about recruiting into PE in Madrid as a foreigner. For context I'm a US MBA student.
Is breaking in similar to the US in that you need to network and network or is recruitment more formalized? Do most PE firms in Spain prefer former bankers?
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