Answering questions PE in Spain

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

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

Yes, networking is definitively very important because it is a shadow market.

Most PE prefer former M&A bankers or management consultants with 2-3 years of experience.

As already mentioned in other posts, being foreigner is only a liability if you are not fluent in Spanish. Additionally, I would say that having a local network is an asset that is harder to have as a foreigner.

You're welcome. It depends on what you want to do next. If you envision yourself doing private banking in the mid-term, I would suggest you the internship you mentioned. If you want to do VC/PE or M&A, I would highly recommend you to look for an internship in an M&A or PE.

As it is widely spread thoughout different posts, networking is often the key to land a desired internship. 

Hope it helps

hi, I think that the best way to secure a full-time offer at a PE firm after 2-3 IB stint is to previously do an internship. And for that, you need networking.

Regarding your second question, I think there are better posts that explain advantages and disadvantages of M&A vs. ECM or Industrials. In my opinion, any of them would work.

Lastly, I would say that tickets in Spanish PE are lower than tickets in USA which in the end results in a slightly different work. Regarding with culture, I think it varies from firm to firm rather than from country to country. Never been in american PE, so I think I can add very little to that.

Hope it helps

Hi! If I were you I'd try to move from US to Europe inside the bank you currently work on or do a lateral move to another bank. After that you'll be better settled to jump in PE in Europe. Hope it helps

Hi! I would say that the hours are much more sustainable in PE vs. IB. Although you have some peak weeks/months, you will definitely not live on a constant peak and normally you will be able to have dinner with friends or family at home everyday.

Hope it helps

Hi there! I answer below:

1) comps are gross/pre-tax

2) For spanish mid-market PE, including bonus and without considering carry: analyst level 40-65k€ / associate level 65-90k€ / senior associate 90k€-120k€ / ID >120k€

3) PE industry is always looking for talent, specially coming from top IB shops. Not best timing as many PE funds are currently in fundraising and fundraising is being quite hard due to macro environment + stock market valuations (to understand this better look for "denominator effect in fundraising"). As well, PEs are primarily looking to hire women as investors are demanding to be closer to parity in investment teams (50% male / 50% female). Last but not least, consider that you should be willing to reduce your fixed salary + bonus because in IB is usually higher (although it should compensate in mid/long-term with carry). In order to maximize opportunities to enter PE, I would recommend to network as much as you can with peers in the industry as recruiting is mostly done in the shadows and in the end it is a networking business where people want to work with people they like

4) I'd rather stay bullish on PE future outllok because of the following: i) PE industry still not as mature as in other EU countries, ii) in Spain there are mostly SMEs are there is still room for consolidation, iii) GDP growth outlook for Spain higher than EU and inflation outlook below EU, iv) Iberia has lowest cost of labour in occidental Europe...

Hi there,

1. In order to do PE in Spain I think knowing Spanish is fundamental (the smaller the target size, the more important it becomes). Bear in mind that Spanish ecosystem is mainly composed by SMEs and that people over 50 years old are not as fluent in English as their peers in other European countries

2. Linkedin or local networking events

3. Never heard of PE firms sponsoring non EU citizens. However I guess it could be possible if really interested

Bear in mind that PE jobs are long-term and firms seek stability in their teams. Therefore, local and native candidates will always have an advantage as a foreigner will be seen as more likely to relocate unless they are married with a local/native or other similar personal arrangement