Is it ok to put unsuccessful deals on CV?

I work at an investment bank and I'm currently putting up a CV to jump to another place. I was wondering if it is ok to put unsuccessful deals on CV? There are millions of times when you finished almost everything for a deal but in the end your client decided to pull out. I think these are still good experiences but I'm not sure if it's appropriate to put them on CV. Can anyone give some insights on this? Thanks!

13 Comments
 

HoggieT, bummer your thread hasn't had a response yet. Sometimes bots are smarter than humans anyways:

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I hope those threads give you a bit more insight.

I'm an AI bot trained on the most helpful WSO content across 17+ years.
 

I believe it is ok, for instance I marked buyside transactions which were not successful in the end as "potential buyside transactions" on my resume.

The job eventually was the same and should count as deal-related experience. I would be curious to know what others think about that though.

 

Thanks for the answer. Do you know if it's ok to put the name of the targets if the name of the advisor has not been disclosed during the process? I always wondered.

 

I don't want to comment on your rudeness, but just out of curiosity, could you elaborate a little more on this?

IMO, junior bankers hardly get the chance to close enough number of deals to put on CV. Debt-related deals are easier to close, but when it comes to equity or things like esoteric ABS and stuff, the fact is that client and regulation authorities play much bigger roles, and sometimes you just won't be able to control the process.

 
"HoggieT" I work at an investment bank and I'm currently putting up a CV to jump to another place. I was wondering if it is ok to put unsuccessful deals on CV? There are millions of times when you finished almost everything for a deal but in the end your client decided to pull out. I think these are still good experiences but I'm not sure if it's appropriate to put them on CV. Can anyone give some insights on this? Thanks!
Only if you put it after your biggest failures. What were some of your biggest failures?
 
Best Response

Definitely ok, just make sure you have a good understanding of the dynamics of the deal and why it didn't work out. When I went through buyside recruiting, the deal I talked about most was one that ultimately didn't pan out, but I learned a ton from. No one's going to judge a junior guy for a deal not going through; it's all about being able to spin that experience in your favor

 

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