I am in still in high school and i am interested in investment banking. I just wanted to know what i should be taking to prepare to become an investment banker. And are there different jobs within investment banking?

By: Cole

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Marketing Strategy

Investment banking analyst jobs pay a heck of a lot of money and many people ask me about what a new analyst will be doing so I thought I’d whip this up.

For starters, I am directing this post at traditional investment banking (this is not sales and trading related). Before many people get deep into job searching for Wall Street jobs they often say they want to be an investment banker…..after they search around they figure out whether they want to be in sales and trading or investment banking. Sales and trading is pretty much what it sounds like while investment banking is a little more confusing. If you don’t know what investment banking entails check the aforementioned post.

As an investment banking analyst you are at the bottom of the totem pole and serve as a corporate clients banker. The job is tough (on the basis of hours) and you can expect to work 80-100 hour weeks for the most part. Anything under 60 hours would be considered a vacation. Although the hours are long, a lot of time is spent sitting around waiting for deals. As an analyst your main job is to do whatever the associate above you asks of you. Usually this means putting together pitch books (also mentioned in the link above), monitoring at the printer, getting coffee, running errands – and if you want to survive – never asking for more work. Building pitch books is very boring.

A good investment banking analyst has expert command of excel and can navigate it solely by using the keyboard. The majority of your time related to pitchbook making will be spent using excel for models and PowerPoint for the actual book pages. You will get very good at both if you aren’t already. Most of the material will be recycled from a previous pitch.

The hours are long and the work is repetitive but there is one bonus, you get paid a lot. If you get placed in New York you will get a salary of $70,000 and your bonus will be at least 40% of that (if you are bad), in a good year it could be one and a half times your salary. Other areas will have slightly smaller pay-outs. So you can decide if it is worth it to you.

On another note, if you aren’t coming from an Ivy League school, investment banking analyst jobs are very tough to get. Email me if you need help in your search, but remember I will ask you why you want to be on Wall Street.

By: James Money

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marketing business

When you talk about investment and investment banking, the first thing that would come to your mind is business management and finance. An investment is something that you place in a bank or venture in the hopes of either saving the money or letting it grow. It is usually for the latter reason that individuals and organizations transact investments. To understand investment banking, first, we have to understand its roots. The term “invest” comes from the term “vestis,” which is Latin for “garment” and was used to denote the act of putting resources into another one’s pockets. Like the Latin term, the investor puts the assets into another entity’s pocket; the latter is where the investment banks come in.

Basically, investment banking involves the client purchasing assets from the investment bank. The client expects that the purchased asset capital will gain dividends and grow. In effect, the investor did not work on anything other than making the initial purchase.

Generally, a bank is a financial institution. It is usually concerned with being the middle entity from which the client can transact business. The client places the money in the different forms of banking services and gains some interest out of this input. The bank, in turn, invests the client’s money into business ventures or allows the clients to borrow money for interest in order to grow the initial cash investment. On the other hand, investment banking is a specific type of banking, which is transactions related and limited to the financial market. This type of banking is concerned with investments as a whole.

Investment banks come in two types. The basic investment bank issues stocks and bonds to the clients for a pre-specified amount. The bank then invests the money that the client used to purchase the stocks and bonds. These investments differ among banks. In countries where it is allowed to do so, investment banks have their networks of financial and lending institutions from which they profit. Others also invest in property development and construction. The client with the stocks and bonds would then receive payments from the profits made on his money on a specified period of time. It can be justified that both the client and the investment bank profited from the client’s initial investment. Because these banks know the ins and outs of their trade, it is not unusual that small or large business ventures and corporations seek their help on matters regarding mergers, acquisitions, and other corporate activities.

The second type of investment banks is the merchant bank. These banks are involved in trade financing and providing capital to business ventures not in terms of loans but of shares. Because these investment banks are based on security of the shares, they finance only those ventures that have made their mark in the business world. New merchant companies are usually not financed.

However, versatility is necessary in business. Therefore, a lot of banks have evolved to encompass all aspects of banking to cater to the needs of a wide range of customers. These banks offer savings deposits and loans services to regular customers and, at the same time, offer investments to the financially advanced ones.

By: John Janson

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marketing excellence

I get confused all the time. Some people said that they’re totally different, but some said that corporate finance is one of the functions in investment banking. Can you please explain?

By: itguru5354

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marketing excellence

Hello, I am an undergrad student studying Economics and Finance, I want to go into investment banking, and I was wondering what books i should be reading? What are key books I should be reading in topics such as Economics and Finance? I want to be more educated but outside my school life regarding investment banking, I don’t know where to start. Thanks!

By: confusedperson

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Coupon Binder

I will be graduating from business school in one month. I majored in finance, and I would love to get into the investment field. However, I don’t want to be a financial planner. Investment banking or something like that would be good. Any ideas of how to contact companies like UBS of Morgan Stanley with hopes of getting a job? Thanks!

By: stang_steed05

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Marketing Strategy

I’m interested in the field, but don’t have much experience. I’m interested in Global Markets and would like to get some general information about this field and investment banking in general.

By: willnyu1982

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Mental Illness News

Asking a basic question about what it is your job would entail at your interview could potentially destroy your application. It simply means that you came unprepared and all the good grades you have on your transcript will go unnoticed. There are a dozen more applications with equally good if not better grades so to really stand out, you’ll need to present yourself with short, crisp, answers that reflect your understanding of the industry.

For example, when an interviewer from Merrill Lynch asks, “Do you have any questions?” And you pose a query, “What is the job scope for analyst in corporate finance/sales/ trading/research/operations/technology?”

How do you think that reflects in the mind of the interviewer?

Now, you could pose that question to a friend who is in the industry, but it is not safe to pose this question to the interviewer because it potentially demonstrates your ignorance of the industry. Your friend is there to help you; the interviewer is there to chop candidates from the list.

Understanding the mindsets of people is the key to asking the right questions and success to life in general. Knowing why different questions attract different responses from different people is crucial. Don’t leave it to chance or the mood of the interviewer on that day to decide what to think of you. Take control of your own interview and be prepared.

You need to know what your role’s description is, what hours you will be working, what type of clients you would be working with (if applicable) and what the day-to-day activities and responsibilities will be as an analyst in your division.

This boils down to research, and here are some ways to do it.

Information Research #1: Go to the firm’s website. Make sure you read the profiles of people in your division at the firm. Learn about the division you are applying for IN DETAIL and what your job would involve.

Information Research #2: Go to similar firms’ websites and read their descriptions of the role. Some firms’ definitions or names of divisions can be different, but it will give you an understanding and jargon the industry uses.

For example, if you have a sales & trading interview at Merrill Lynch, go to Goldman Sachs website and learn how that division is described on their website.
By using some of the insider words use to describe a similar position, you’ll find yourself more natural and eloquent at your interview, leaving the impression that you UNDERSTAND the job. Also, you’ll have additional investment banking vocabulary that other interviewees would not have.

Information Research #3: Speak to friends, seniors who you know ALREADY work in your desired division and offer to buy them tea. Offer value before taking and in this case during the meetup, you’ll have a chance to ask about their day-to-day role. With this knowledge, you will be able to give your interviewer an impression that you know what you’re in for and importantly, ready to contribute.

And at your interview, mention that you spoke to this particular person and you were interested in what he/she told you.

Have an attitude that you’re there to contribute to the team. And you’ll jumpstart your investment banking career. Another good resource is this Investment Banking career guide

By: Sherman Choo

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business marketing plan

i want to get into investment banking, and will be applying for universities this year, but i dont want to study the subject in uni. do i have to do a degree in something business related or can i do something like engineering or physics and still get into investment banking? if yes, which is better to do engineering or physics > if you’re planning to go into investment banking after anyway.

By: S

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business marketing strategy

I am interested in majoring in Business Finance and I am trying to find out about some jobs I could get after college. The two jobs that I am interested in are investment banking or trading (possibly stock trader). So, what are the major differences between the two? Also, are these jobs ones that you could get an internship and do you really have to be in the top schools to get into a good job in these fields?

By: Smurfcatcher

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Marketing Strategies