Investment Banking

Challenging!  The bulk of the investment banks are in survival mode and in some cases are cutting their numbers from the highs reached over the last 18 months.  It’s been a tough year across ECM and M&A, revenue is down on 2010, and this is reflected in a lack of hiring appetite across the board in these two product areas.  The exception to this amongst banks are some of the smaller houses or newer entrants, who remain interested at Analyst and Associate levels.  We’re seeing a little bit more activity amongst the independent corporate advisory platforms, particularly those servicing the mid market and where revenue has been less volatile.

Plenty of trends, not all of them of a positive nature.  The gloss has certainly come off investment banking as a longer term career choice, particularly amongst the junior ranks, many of whom have left or are seeking to leave the industry for pastures new.  This has coincided with an uptick in the number of opportunities outside of IB, including a trend of companies strengthening their in-house capabilities, PE and fund management coming online again.  Some have simply decided to leave the FS industry for good, in some cases testing out their entrepreneurial instincts with new commercial ventures.

International mobility or lack of it has been noticeable.  Overseas markets have been in cutting mode, preventing Australian domiciled bankers from making the move.  Asia has been growing but the demand for Asian language skills remains a key requirement, particularly for the junior to mid ranks.

Other trends include more lateral moves from the chartered and legal worlds into investment banking, given the shortage of qualified banking talent available elsewhere (we see that trending ending as bankers come onto the market via retrenchment or movement post bonus; a much greater demand for female professionals given the hugely disproportionate numbers in the industry; the strengthening of the boutique model (coming back into vogue as the true independent advisor).

We see hiring opportunities increasingly amongst the Big 4 commercial banks, who are looking to capitalise on their entrenched positions with corporate clients.   Offering a more sophisticated client advisory service alongside a higher quality equity / debt product, the Big 4 are targeting business previously dominated by the IB community, and with it the investment bankers.