From afar, mergers and acquisitions (M&A) divisions of investment banks look extremely glamorous for job-seeking graduates. M&A is also one of the most difficult area to break into at the graduate level. What are the qualifications required? What about specific skills that banks seek?
Private equity (PE) is often described as an exclusive club that accepts only former investment bankers, strategy consultants, and top b-school graduates as members. That’s not the case always. PE also offers grads and undergrads, engineers and accountants serious consideration and engaging and gainful careers. Here we map the routes to PE careers and career … Read more
Bulge-bracket investment banks are global investment banks with customers such as governments, large corporations, and institutions. They provide services such as equity research, sales and trading, asset management, advisory assistance and underwriting. Bulge-bracket banks offer innovative financial products, ranging from equities and commodities derivatives to credit, mortgage, and insurance packages, crafted from their sustained research … Read more
“Private equity” comprises investors and funds that put in millions or billions of dollars for the acquisition of stake in companies that are in need of capital and restructuring, that are already bringing in revenue, and that can be made more profitable. These investments are not noted in a public exchange. Private Equity (PE) firms … Read more
Simply put, an asset manager’s job is to make sure that the savings/assets/investments of clients grow, whether the clients are super-rich or are working-class people hoping to lead a dignified life after retirement. Asset managers choose the investments that their clients could make—stocks, bonds, pension funds, retirement funds, hedge funds, institutional investments, retail investments, insurance, … Read more
Many MBA graduates would part with their last dime to become successful hedge fund managers. The “Benjamins” are, of course, the obvious main attraction. And we aren’t talking about any “handsome salaries” or “decent commissions” but really big bucks. The annual earnings of the top hedge fund managers easily cross $1 billion each: think of … Read more
Fundamentally, asset management involves managing money that other people have, and investment banking is about raising money that companies want but don’t have. It becomes more complicated as you try to explain the terms in detail. So, let’s touch upon just the basics here. Investment banking (IB) involves raising financial capital for companies, government, and … Read more
Business management graduates who want to build a career in finance generally go into investment banking. But the “buy-side” now presents an attractive employment destination, too, with institutions such as private equity (PE) funds, hedge funds, and asset managers recruiting MBAs.