Investment banks have to work harder to hold on to their junior bankers who focus on technology deals. Tech juniors are being targeted by a range of companies and are ditching banking after only a few months.
“Junior tech bankers are being targeted, but they’re also gaming the system because they know they have options,” says one junior banker headhunter. “Most go into banking with an idea that they want to leave, and choose tech because it opens a lot of doors.”
The latest examples of TMT escapees come from Credit Suisse. Lisa Engelen, who joined Credit Suisse’s TMT banking team in September last year, has just joined marketing analytics tech start-up Pixoneye as an analyst. Meanwhile, Makram Chehayeb, who also joined Credit Suisse’s analyst programme last year in TMT, has just joined telecoms consultancy Aetha Consulting.
It’s not like investment banks aren’t looking after their junior recruits. The latest figures for 2017’s payout from recruiters Arkesden suggest that the vast majority of investment banks increased bonuses for analysts this year, and this follows 20% salary rises for analysts at most banks in 2015. Credit Suisse hiked its compensation by £5k for its analysts, which was towards the bottom of the pack, however.
“It’s not about money, it’s about opportunity,” says the headhunter. “A few months or years in an investment bank is enough to open up doors with tech firms. Tech is growing, banking is shrinking.”
These moves are not isolated incidents. Alexander Cornish spent five months on Deutsche Bank’s TMT team before moving to food delivery firm Deliveroo in a finance role. Carlos Ventura, an associate in the TMT M&A group at Goldman Sachs in London, also joined Deliveroo in a corporate development and strategy role.
Then there’s the fact that buy-side firms have been raiding investment banks’ TMT teams. At J.P. Morgan, Toedora Teia Negoita left to join PE firm Hearst Ventures, Maria Chekulaeva departed for TPG Global and Andrea Calabrò signed up to growth equity firm General Atlantic. They all worked in TMT.
Similarly, Goldman Sachs TMT analysts Olivier Roy and Alexis Collin both departed for the buy-side earlier this year.
TMT is the place to be for young bankers, but maybe not for long.
Contact: pclarke@efinancialcareers.com
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