High Finance Thread

[Alexander]

I must admit that I`ve never dealt with stocks before, but as it`s said, there must be a first time. I was advised this as the first step to explore, understand, dive into the world of investing. After some time, I understand that conservative investing is where an investor should start. Now I`m interested in long-term investing, 5 years and more, I`m not planning to play on speculation, to resell and try to make money on it. At least, not yet. Even when I started my way I turned to fiduciary financial advisor for advice I can say with certainty now that it was not superfluous. I probably wouldn`t have copied your strategy, as long as I'm content with everything.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

"High finance" comes from the French "haute finance". Finance is a multifarious industry, with many layers servicing the entire economy. "High finance" is most easily contrasted to retail finance, for example retail banking where the bank serves individual customers or businesses, taking deposits and making loans.

Traditionally "haute finance" involved lending money directly to the king or country, and the financial transactions between countries. Finance is much more than just lending money nowadays and has many other large players than just countries too, so the meaning of high finance has also evolved.

You can loosely define high finance today as financial services between large institutions (instead of individuals), and involving large transaction sizes. So within finance, one hears terms like "institutional investor" or "institutional clients". The quintessential institutional client in Singapore's context is GIC or Temasek, but it will also mean hedge funds. Given that these institutions can trade/transact in large sizes and consistently, they will get the best pricing in deals.

Private banking is typically not "high finance". Individual clients are rarely considered as "institutions" unless you are Warren Buffett or a few such individuals. There are also important regulatory and compliance reasons to differentiate between individuals and incorporated institutions. Even most billionaires would need to create a family office to become an "institutional client".

Within banking, I would say that if your client is GIC or UOB Asset Management, rather than Mr. Tan or Garden Restaurant Ltd, then you are operating in "high finance". But frankly, this term is rather ostentatious and rarely used by bankers. We just say "institutional clients".

Great info, any idea on compensation figures for AMs and SWFs like those that you mentioned?

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Great info, any idea on compensation figures for AMs and SWFs like those that you mentioned?

Starting salaries thread has pretty accurate info for various FO and ops roles

attending a GIC case study- any clue what it entails? since its's 2 hrs, i assume it's modelling test + summarise your investment proposition? thank you

[TTT]

Hi guys, can I ask if an SIM grad with about 1 year exp as a rotational grad trainee role in a global broker-dealer firm, will it be easy to find another job with a higher pay? I feel im paid quite low with no increment and am looking elsewhere now.

Originally Posted by TTT

Hi guys, can I ask if an SIM grad with about 1 year exp as a rotational grad trainee role in a global broker-dealer firm, will it be easy to find another job with a higher pay? I feel im paid quite low with no increment and am looking elsewhere now.

wrong thread...

Originally Posted by Unregistered

attending a GIC case study- any clue what it entails? since its's 2 hrs, i assume it's modelling test + summarise your investment proposition? thank you

Not a modeling test, but yes you will be required to come to an investment proposition using only the materials they give you

Originally Posted by TTT

Hi guys, can I ask if an SIM grad with about 1 year exp as a rotational grad trainee role in a global broker-dealer firm, will it be easy to find another job with a higher pay? I feel im paid quite low with no increment and am looking elsewhere now.

To be honest, it is difficult for anyone who doesn't have any connections into a company that they want to join, since there is a pandemic right now.

Good luck anyway.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Not a modeling test, but yes you will be required to come to an investment proposition using only the materials they give you

Ah thank you kind soul, though not that I don’t wish to trust you but 2.5hrs with no modelling sounds a little too good to be true?

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Not only that, the hiring manager gets a monthly kickback, likely paid quietly in the old country, for choosing to employ him.

The question you should be asking is how do you compete against them. Not bitching about it. You can bitch all you want, but it won't change anything. You are still not getting the job. Some idiots even think they can change the situation by bitching to the government but i can assure you it changes nothing. If a hiring manager feels more chemistry towards a candidate he/she will hire that candidate no matter what the government says or do. There are always thousands of ways to justify a hire just like there are many ways to skin a cat.