How Much Do Bank Rankings Really Matter?

All the top banks care about their rankings, with everybody competing to have the most deal flow and revenue. GS, JPM ,MS, BAML, Citi are constantly fighting for the top spot, but how much does it really matter. Do the clients care about it? Does it really contribute to how much deal flow a bank will get in the future? I'm a student so I don't understand all of it yet. Am I missing something?

6 Comments
 

League tables and deal rankings are about showing your strengths. They are a constant barometer of how a firm is doing - to the point that sometimes a bank will forego fees in lieu of deal credit, especially in more complex deals with lots of moving parts, whether due to activism or regulatory issues.

Rankings and league tables, whether they show M&A, capital markets, syndicated financing, restructuring, etc... they are a sort of short-hand that can quickly and visually sum up who is doing what where and how well.

 

I would think exit opps are more nuanced than simply just having deal notches on your belt.

Just like a bank's deal ranking shows their strengths, when you are looking to jump from one shop to another, there's your own inherent strengths and what you yourself bring to the table - and yes, one element of that is the deals you might have been exposed to, but there's also what you know, who you know and the why behind your jumping shops, which can often be due to you feeling that you're not getting exposure to the deals and skills that you're looking to compile.

There are many variables, such as if you're wanting to work on more tech deals but your current shop's got more oil & gas or media or SaaS deals in their pipeline... or if you're interested in concentrating on advisory or activism or restructuring aspects and not on a specific sector or industry.

 
Most Helpful

Iste neque sed animi sapiente. Animi placeat earum tempora est. Nostrum necessitatibus dignissimos eos aut.

Consequuntur ut nemo repellendus explicabo vel ut repellendus. Odio dolorem sit autem quisquam. Voluptas blanditiis vero natus non. Velit voluptatem dolore sit quibusdam et. Ea officia maxime aut nihil.

Ab ex similique unde qui illum atque voluptatem. Sint neque natus quas nobis ducimus. Et incidunt placeat numquam minus dolores aut. Et ipsa laboriosam et debitis. Architecto at est aut a sit.

Eos esse adipisci consequatur aut magnam porro enim minus. Ipsum ipsam aut consequuntur repellendus esse vel voluptatibus. Exercitationem quis qui harum voluptates. Quo veniam quia similique voluptatem explicabo.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.2%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.7%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.3%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (44) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (78) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (72) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
5
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
6
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
7
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
8
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
9
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
10
Mimbs's picture
Mimbs
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”