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Corporate investment banker: Salary and conditions

• The average starting salary is between £32,000 and £40,000, with some companies still offering a golden handshake of around £4,000 to the most desirable candidates (salary data collected May 2010)
• After three or more years, salaries may range between £50,000 and £75,000 (salary data collected May 2010).
• Those with significant experience may earn a base salary of around £150,000 although a decline in the economic climate makes these top level salaries harder to find.
• Pay is often performance-related. For a new trainee, salaries may be increased by up to 50% annually through bonuses. Managing directors' salaries often account for less than 15-20% of their total earnings, with the rest being bonus-related. However, every year up to 10% of an investment bank's workforce may be lost as a result of poor individual performances. The environment is strongly meritocratic.
• Hours are regularly long and often unsocial. Weekend work is common as deals approach crucial stages. Fifteen-hour days are not unusual and investment bankers work up to 100-hour weeks.
• Investment banks are increasingly keen to attract a diverse workforce. Most have internal support networks for under-represented groups. A number of banks are members of the Diversity Champions programme from Stonewall .
• The working environment can be extremely stressful as high expectations for targets are set. The industry is also strongly connected to the economy, and job availability and the amount of job losses fluctuate depending on how healthy the economy is.
• The main financial centres are New York and London, followed by major European cities such as Frankfurt and Paris. UK-based positions are almost exclusively in London.
• Many investment banks have global offices and offer trainees the chance to work overseas within the first two years. Once qualified, investment bankers may spend significant time working overseas.

AGCAS

Written by Tara Christopher, AGCAS

Last updated:

July 2010

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