IB Cultures In Different Countries

I've been wondering for a while what the overarching cultural differences (including firm specific) were between different countries. Can anyone enlighten me and other prospective bankers?

I'm located in the Asia Pacific region, and from my observations and conversations with bankers, they all seem to really enjoy their work and spending time with colleagues. For example, I had an interview with a MD at a BB in Sydney who described himself as the 'friendliest guy on the floor', and he pitched to me the genuinely warm culture of the firm. He backed this statement up by emphasising that most bankers had been at this firm for over a decade, with very few moving.

This of course leads me to wonder how much of this is true, since obviously no one would reveal any horrors to students. Also, how much of the ripping into analysts for screwing up a chart to pulling off Hermes ties situations are accurate?

Has anyone worked in multiple regions? I'd love to hear your discussions below.

 
Best Response

Culture depends on the people but here's what I've heard from a few friends from a few friends who've done IB in other countries:

  • London - similar to NY scene long hour and can have good & bad MDs
  • Paris - terrible culture, all junior employees are disposable and to rise in the ranks you need to have a select group of schools.
  • Hong Kong - Brutal. If you're doing IBD pure(not cap markets) you work even worse hours than in the US. On the bright side at least the tax rate isn't that high....
  • LATAM (Panama) -Long hours, but not nearly as bad as in the US. I've been told by friends its also fairly easy to take time off too which is nice.
 

IBD banker friend who used to work in Chicago said that working in SG is not all that different, just that the workforce in US is somewhat smarter (more business sense and less textbook square), and that Singaporeans can get overly sensitive about hierarchy. Also - big disadvantage if you are racially non-Chinese. But it was all a matter of degrees, and he did enjoy the experience overall.

 

I spent a summer with a mm PE firm in China and I never really got the aggressive, cutthroat competitive vibes Wall Street gives off. Most of the major Chinese banks and buy-side firms have links, direct or indirect, to the Communist party, so there's no hour long debate over "BB vs Elite Boutique". The comp is a lot lower, and the dress code reflects that; my MD wore the dreaded short sleeved dress shirt on a regular basis. If you're looking for prestige in China, join the goddamn Communist Party and/or go buy a house in America.

I don't think IB, and finance in general, is considered as prestigious as it is in the West. I'd say that the glitz and glamour of the Hong Kong IB scene derives itself from the high proportion of Westerners working there; the best thing to be in China is rich and foreign.

EDIT: To be fair, I worked at a mostly Chinese firm. I'm sure the Shanghai offices of your MS/GS/JPM are closer to home.

 

Yeah, absolutely. Taught me a lot about the Chinese economy, and I left with talking points for interviews and actionable knowledge I was later able to trade on. I'd say there's more of an appetite for risk across the board; investors are hungry for sky-high returns and it's definitely something that affects the way they do business.

 

Singapore is extremely firm-specific. Some are downright horrible, some are ok-ish. The one I was at was the former, it was tough. It's like US with a loat more bad MDs, the kind who generates fire-drills for something that will lay at the bottom of his pile for a week.

This part of my life. . .is called "Running"
 

Always assumed it would be more laidback due to lower deal flow (just what I've gathered from WSO). Would you suggest NYC over SG despite Visa issues?

dudesama - Singaporean passport; but non Chinese. Appreciate the input though, haven't really seen SG guys in high finance use this website. (Although this is WSO, not raffles city oasis)

 

I dont know what I'd suggest you but I'd prefere NYC over SG. I agree the deal flow is lesser but then the staffing is proportionately less as well. Also, the senior management I worked with was quite "Asian" or probably were groomed as such. Analyst and Associate work-life balances were not even in thier universe of thought. Just my two cents, though.

This part of my life. . .is called "Running"
 

I interned at a BB in continental Europe in a country that is relatively laid back. From what I've seen it depends a lot on where the senior people got their experience; all my Directors and up were either NYC or LDN bankers before, so it was 9-2am average.

Basically, I think it may depend more on where the senior people were groomed than the country you are in.

 

Friend who works at a BB did his first two IBD analyst years in NYC and then transferred to their London office. It's a little better hours-wise but not that much better, but there is more vacation time even for analysts. Plus London is a short flight away from Amsterdam, Prague, Switzerland, etc.

Friend in a similar position started off as an analyst in Australia, and claimed the culture there was incredibly relaxed. People often went surfing before coming in and such, as well as a total lack of hierarchy. Associates often pitched to clients and other practices that are hard to imagine in NYC.

 

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