Exit Opportunities from IB

Why do people decide to exit?

Investment banking is one of the most stressful jobs in finance involving long hours, multi-tasking, being extremely productive, and being result-oriented. Most banks have a strong up or out culture where the bottom feeders consistently move out of the system. Consequently, people who manage to survive in the industry develop valuable skills. A lot of people working at IB firms therefore make a move to other industries where they feel they can apply their knowledge and experience they have acquired in investment banking.

What are the typical exit paths?

• The most natural exit path for junior folks tends to be moving to the buy-side due to the overlap in skills and technical training that is required in both the jobs.
• Buy-side firms are generally leaner and do not spend time on extensively training the employees. They expect employees to have deal experience and be able to hit the ground running.
• However, it becomes difficult to move to buy-side roles from senior banking roles as skill sets start to diverge from mid-tier positions.
• Mid to senior employees at IB firms typically exit into corporate roles where they can work in strategy roles, be part of the CEO’s office, lead corporate development roles or take up CFO roles in companies as it aligns with the skills they develop in investment banking.