High Finance Thread

Originally Posted by notahardo

hello, was browsing through this thread and saw there are couple of misconceptions around the IBD industry.

There was a comment about hard work trumping networking ability, I would say by and large this is right. Unless your parents are C-suite at a major corporate client, most people 'break in' through sheer grit, hard work (studying like crazy for interviews, racking up internships and the like), and of course a little bit of luck.

Even if your parents are hotshots, the major banks have very bureaucratic hiring systems which act as a filter against hiring if you have a close relation to a major existing client, due to issues with conflict of interest. I think only boutiques (Evercore, Greenhill etc.) have leeway to work around those restrictions.

Personally, I'm a second year analyst a tier-1 BB bank - happy to answer any questions to clear up the mystery shrouding this sector.

Other than MM banks, what places gives undergrad a shot at BB?

Why would anyone want to join IB. Your life sux and your pay isn't that great on an hourly basis. If i was young again, i'd try to join a Venture firm instead. Waaaaaay better prospects, better lifestyle, more job satisfaction...

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Why would anyone want to join IB. Your life sux and your pay isn't that great on an hourly basis. If i was young again, i'd try to join a Venture firm instead. Waaaaaay better prospects, better lifestyle, more job satisfaction...

i would choose cash management instead

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Why would anyone want to join IB. Your life sux and your pay isn't that great on an hourly basis. If i was young again, i'd try to join a Venture firm instead. Waaaaaay better prospects, better lifestyle, more job satisfaction...

LOL VC is a joke. 0 technicals needed, ‘Entrepreneurship’ bros without the caliber. IB guys doing 1B deals or exit to MFPE doing buyouts while you stay at VC dealing with **** startups.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Why would anyone want to join IB. Your life sux and your pay isn't that great on an hourly basis. If i was young again, i'd try to join a Venture firm instead. Waaaaaay better prospects, better lifestyle, more job satisfaction...

You are an absolute joke, I don’t even need to deign to elaborate why

Originally Posted by Unregistered

You are an absolute joke, I don’t even need to deign to elaborate why

Pretty sure rising up the ranks in ven cap is not easily happening, and that most entrants (who aren't connected or haven't made it big somewhere else already) are entry level saikang warriors

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Pretty sure rising up the ranks in ven cap is not easily happening, and that most entrants (who aren't connected or haven't made it big somewhere else already) are entry level saikang warriors

Every job and industry needs saikang warriors so - is the saikang worse in VC?

Originally Posted by notahardo

hello, was browsing through this thread and saw there are couple of misconceptions around the IBD industry.

There was a comment about hard work trumping networking ability, I would say by and large this is right. Unless your parents are C-suite at a major corporate client, most people 'break in' through sheer grit, hard work (studying like crazy for interviews, racking up internships and the like), and of course a little bit of luck.

Even if your parents are hotshots, the major banks have very bureaucratic hiring systems which act as a filter against hiring if you have a close relation to a major existing client, due to issues with conflict of interest. I think only boutiques (Evercore, Greenhill etc.) have leeway to work around those restrictions.

Personally, I'm a second year analyst a tier-1 BB bank - happy to answer any questions to clear up the mystery shrouding this sector.

Qn: how hard did you have to work (internships, case competitions eg.) to get to where you are now?

Always remember that economics and authority sit with who raised the capital. That's not 25 year old hot **** VC analysts. What skills do you bring to the table as a VC analyst anyway? There's some title inflation going on so some associates are even titled as Partners. But life is the same - you can source all you want, the managing partners make the call. A lot of the inflation happened in hot markets. Many entrepreneurs don't even give a **** about you, but are only polite because you are in between them and the capital they want to get. VC also sucks on a mgmt fee / invmt professional basis unless you're at a Sequoia or something.

There's probably 5 years of your life that you'll have to invest in learning (1) complexity (2) processes. Appreciating the complexity in businesses across industries and stages. Complexity in financial modelling, structuring, legal docs, diligence. Processes in running diligence processes, putting the right things up to committee internally. You can learn this in IB, PE, or even some serious VCs (for VC more so in a in a portfolio management stage, esp if you have significant influence on governance, not the investment stage and definitely not syndicate free-riders). Maybe consulting but those guys have 0 ownership over any asset and just churn pretty slides. FYI VC term sheets, financial analysis and memos do NOT constitute complexity.

After that, you start being valuable to other firms and will be hired into roles where you can take the lead on processes.

I am not some boomer who thinks there's only 1 way to earn your rank or pay. Pay is a function of demand and supply and you can be paid anywhere from $50k to $200k p.a. as a VC analyst for all I care. But some things you have to get competent at, and that's not from deploying easy money in a hot market and attending DeFi conferences with fellow apes.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Always remember that economics and authority sit with who raised the capital. That's not 25 year old hot **** VC analysts. What skills do you bring to the table as a VC analyst anyway? There's some title inflation going on so some associates are even titled as Partners. But life is the same - you can source all you want, the managing partners make the call. A lot of the inflation happened in hot markets. Many entrepreneurs don't even give a **** about you, but are only polite because you are in between them and the capital they want to get. VC also sucks on a mgmt fee / invmt professional basis unless you're at a Sequoia or something.

There's probably 5 years of your life that you'll have to invest in learning (1) complexity (2) processes. Appreciating the complexity in businesses across industries and stages. Complexity in financial modelling, structuring, legal docs, diligence. Processes in running diligence processes, putting the right things up to committee internally. You can learn this in IB, PE, or even some serious VCs (for VC more so in a in a portfolio management stage, esp if you have significant influence on governance, not the investment stage and definitely not syndicate free-riders). Maybe consulting but those guys have 0 ownership over any asset and just churn pretty slides. FYI VC term sheets, financial analysis and memos do NOT constitute complexity.

After that, you start being valuable to other firms and will be hired into roles where you can take the lead on processes.

I am not some boomer who thinks there's only 1 way to earn your rank or pay. Pay is a function of demand and supply and you can be paid anywhere from $50k to $200k p.a. as a VC analyst for all I care. But some things you have to get competent at, and that's not from deploying easy money in a hot market and attending DeFi conferences with fellow apes.

VC analysts will cry over this post when they realise they’re not hot ****. TDLR: Do IB (the real hot ****)