Boutique investment banks are an evolution of investment banking based on the demand for a bouquet of services mainly by smaller enterprises and startups. Since the investment ceiling in this group is not tiny and extends to Rs 200Cr, many investment firms and banks find it an excellent opportunity to customize their services to cater to such clients. Firms like JP Morgan, JM Financial, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs were quick to jump on to the bandwagon. In India, currently, a large number of opportunities have been thrown open by European firms like Merrill Lynch, Citigroup, BNP Paribas, Credit Suisse and Lehman Brothers outsourcing their requirements of investment banking.
What are Boutique Investment Banks?
The top-heavy banks with the highly paid large payouts and boards look at markets above the 100Cr Rs mark and charge a commission that could vary from 0.5 percent to about 2 percent of the deal values neglecting the markets below 100Cr as their demands seem exorbitant here.
A boutique services investment firm concentrates on the 10 to 100Cr segment offering them services like bank debt, fund-raising, private equity, advising on acquisitions, dealing with mergers, managing IPOs and customizing on services in between, while offering them the personalization of the large banks with better services thrown in.
Among the Indian firms who are worth watching and joining for a lucrative top-notch career are Veda Corp, Ripple Wave, MAPE, Cogence Advisors, Equirius Capital, and P2P who are giving the big banks a run for their money in the boutique banking sector. These firms are typically staffed by less than a hundred employees and offer great opportunities in the IB sector both in terms of payouts and career progression.
The job role:
To understand what these companies look for in the new hires, let us try to look at what exactly happens in an average investment banker’s workday. The task-list of an investment banker includes advising and pitching financial instruments to clients, helping with investment and funding decisions, and providing financial data to clear customer decisions.
The fun part lies in creating financial reports, reporting trends, making client presentations, garnering foresight, researching case studies and more. Client facing tasks like issuances and debt-portfolio management is challenging and exciting.
The career progression:
Doing an IB course reiterates that investment banking is about setting and selling the right expectations. You will probably progress up the ladder quickly, enjoy high bonuses and payouts linked to the deal values, and would need every bit of the best financial training and skills to handle the stress and heat that will last through work hours like 100 to 180 hours a week being considered part of the job.
The usual hierarchy of job roles is as given below -
- Undergraduates spend up to 2 to 3 years as an FA learning on the job.
- The graduates joining as IB Associates depending on their specialization or those with actual work experience and classroom.
training spend about 3-4 years learning and practicing their role. - VP- Investment Banking based on performances and value-adds to the organization being the next progressive step.
- Director-IB, which is a management and decision-making high strategy role.
- CFO, MD and such who anchor and are at the helm of the management team.
The essential traits required:
Investment banking calls for requisite skills in analytical, quantitative and commercial awareness coupled with the banker using his/her persona, discipline, and financial integrity while remaining calm and stress-free through a punishing day. Many of the finance, law and economics graduates who do a skill-building investment banking course at Imarticus Learning benefit from a comprehensive curriculum and excellent soft-skills training by being placed as Associates directly under their assured placement programs.
Remember that according to Payscale chart below, the investment banker's payouts are among the best.
Any employer would also want people with these attributes.
- Certifications are worth their weight in terms of measurable skills.
- Proficiency in Excel techniques, PowerPoint presentations, an excellent foundation in accounting and finance and the MS Office and Word suites.
- Counting as an effective team member.
- Being an effective organizer.
- Being always in the learning mode.
- Excellent skills in financial modeling.
Concluding notes:
The total payouts in investment banking are proportional to your skills, hard work, and basic training. Your performance and bonuses will depend on your work. Join the investment banking course at Imarticus Learning to hone your financial suite of skills and take advantage of their soft skills modules. A measurable global certification which endorses your practical skills is highly sought after as real-life experience and preferred by many employers.
Wishing you all success in your career! For more information in brief and for further career counseling, you can also search for - Imarticus Learning and can drop your query by filling up a simple form or can contact us through the Live Chat Support system or can even visit one of our training centers based in - Mumbai, Thane, Pune, Chennai, Banglore, Hyderabad, Delhi, Gurgaon, and Ahmedabad.
