Dear all,

I have been reading this section for quite a while and I believe there's a few experienced people in the investment banking scene.

I have just graduated and is searching for a career. My dream is to join a bulge bracket (BB) investment bank (IB) in the future, perhaps either in Singapore or Hong Kong. (preferably Corporate Finance (CF) or Investment Banking division)

Thus, I am asking a few questions in relation to which career path to take right now.

1. There are a few feasible opportunities:
A) Local IB
B) Local Big 4 CF advisory
C) SG Big 4 Auditing

2. What is the difference between IB and big 4 CF?

3. Which are the Tier 1 IBs in Malaysia?

p.s. I do not wish to go through rotations as I'm quite certain that I'm interested in CF.

Thanks in advance and I really appreciate any positive input.

-deleted-

This post has been edited by bucharestophere: Jan 6 2011, 12:10 PM

I graduated from an Australian University (Bachelors).

I also did an internship at a Msian IB.

This post has been edited by confused*88*: Dec 22 2010, 05:15 PM

@confused88
i think its best you state out your major? you could be majoring in IT, which has little relevance to finance / accounting

I graduated with a Accounting/Banking & Finance double major.

I have almost the same aim as you.
Will be hoping you could get useful advise as I will be tapping them too.
Good luck to both of us.

2. An investment bank can include raising capital in their deals as they have a license to do so. Big 4 doesn't have that; usually taking on smaller clients which the banks do not want and only provide advisory services.

3. The major local anchor banks investment banking arm include CIMB, Maybank, RHB and AmBank. CIMB tops the list in the league tables. Foreign banks do not have much of an investment banking presence here, mostly limited to research or stockbroking.

U had an internship, and yet u don't know what is going on? Doubt u'll get far. I'm in it, but wouldn't offer any advise. Having an internship without knowing what's the next plan already revealed what a failure u r

Do you consider CFA ?

I doubt that you're certain about ur interest in CF.
If ur so certain u won't even ask those question above.
U've an intern and ur so determined, yet u dun know who's the Tier1 players? No.1 attitude requirement for CF is being resourceful and dun ask stupid question until u've research all avenues. I wouldn't be so harsh, if u didn't boast about ur determination in CF.

2. All of the 3 options u've stated will only give u 5% chance of getting into BB IB in SG or HK (note: i din't say 0%). The higher chance way is to get Masters from world top 5 university, such as Harvard, University of Chicago, etc etc (do ur research, i dun hav the time).

For ur Q2, do ur own research. Google it and search thru 10 pages at least.

Lastly, by CF itself is very vauge, as CF work in local IB, foriegn IB and Big4is very diff. Go figure. Hence, again, i doubt ur determination.

and also, for huge MNC, they have their own CFs. U wan to get in? Yea, maybe those small time ones, where the deals don't get into their hand. And that time, TS's dream of getting huge bonuses will be tarnished.

@gloomberg
arent you new towards the working force itself? From other threads I think you jsut started working right? (well at least in IB).

No doubt TS didnt do much research etc on the field he/she is trying to enter but, well, no reason to act arrogantly / cocky right? I believe this is a thread seeking advice / guidance, not a bashing one.

Most ppl in IB seem to act that way but not sure why.

Chartered Financial Analyst?

Yes, I think Topace111 was asking confused*88* to consider getting the CFA designation.

confused*88*, if you graduated from a big brand university in Australia, then try applying to the IBs in Singapore first. If you can't, then try CIMB or Maybank Investment Bank.

Hi confused*88*,

Refer to your statement "...did an internship at the IB deparment of a big local IB". So the "local" should means in Australia as I assume. So I'm just wondering why don't the "local" IB comfirm you as a permenant staff once you completed your internship if you are performing well? Even so, you still can look for other IB in Australia instead of coming back to Malaysia to look for CF job?

Nowadays even the experienced one not easy to look for CF jobs in Singapore before the election (Singapore). Of course if TS did a lot of corporate exercises during his internship in the "big local IB" of which could brush up his CV a little bit nicer, who knows he got a chance to get an interview from SG's IBs? Anyway, i think TS should apply CF job from IBs in KL to gain more experience and exposure first.

BTW, getting CFA is not a pre-requisite to work in CF though it would be an advantage. Instead passing SC licensing exam is a must for those who plan to work in CF from IBs as a long term career.

Yeah I've signed up for the June 2011 examinations already.

Thanks for the advice.

From my experience, I'd say I'm quite certain about that but I'm sure there's more for me to find out in the field. So I didn't say I'm 100% sure.

I'm not planning to do a Masters right now, but that is a viable plan in the future.

I will find out more about the things that u've noted. Thanks.



Thanks for the reply.

FYI, I graduated from Monash. I'd say its not too reputable but its OK.

I have already applied for the graduate positions but I'm not expecting much from it. Hence, I'm seeking advice as to which career is a better step stone to a BB IB.

I dont want to be rotated but if thats the best step stone I might consider that path. Any advice on that?


I did intern at a MY IB. I'm already back in MY but I didn't want to go through rotations so I'm still considering other options.


Of the three that I've listed, which experience is more creditable if I were to apply for BB IB in the future?

Thanks a lot for your reply.

Don’t be misguided by the forum for real. Ignore posts from the interval of 7am to 2am (+1) - Generally. Opportunity cost for IB-ers to post at this forum is just too high - Generally.
For BB/Tier-1 Corporate Finance, forget about the qualifications needed besides your Degree. Leverage on the internship. Your best cut to being an Analyst in CF is probably from internship/job placement in the campus, unless you’re some private banker’s client’s - children. If you fail this stage, go to Plan B or Plan C, or Plan D.
Plan B entails a reputable B-school. As you are aware of, you probably will be in your late 20s to early 30s. Getting an MBA will open doors to interviews at campus.
Plan C covers Big 4 CF. Generally the experience is quite similar except for capital market experiences and size of the deals in the pipeline.
Plan D involves being a specialist in your industry. This master of trade is demanded by the IBs.
Either Plan A,B, C, D, or E….CF requires you to be ‘smoky’. In the sense, never answer “I Don’t Know” and smoke all the way, of course with substance.

Wats sc licensing may I ask?

First of all, what is ur motivation behind getting into an IB? Money? Glory? Just make sure u have what it takes, i.e. relentless stamina, working late till 4-5am(when there's project, and this is frequent for big IB), adept to analyzing business, living in solitude, tough mentally and physically, great communication and client servicing skills, pro in excel, and one thing u realize when u're in it, unrealistic business valuation (cuz it all depends on ur client's satisfaction to get the deal done).

@kelvin_tan, lol, im new, but i ask around. and look around. there maybe claim that they are an IBer albeit they're not, but it's really up to u guys to judge what is plausible or not.

I've met many freshies, but a lot of them are super stuck up although they knew nothing. literally nothing. nil. well, if this is the attitude when they meet their clients, keep it up. Yea, glorified job, but there's a price to pay for it. In the end of the day, what matters most is not just your technical skills, but also your ability to maintain good relationship with clients (so that they continue doing business with u?), although many people didn't know that their clients can be next to them when they least expect it.

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Added on November 24, 2010, 9:56 pmModule 12 & 19, go check the website la...

This post has been edited by gloomberg: Nov 24 2010, 09:56 PM