What does an investment banker do in a corporate finance department?
Investment bankers are ultimately responsible for the success of their clients. In some roles, they take on many responsibilities while others specialize in one or two specific areas. All positions are responsible for raising money for their clients primarily through issuing debt and selling equity in capital markets.
Key Takeaways
Investment banking grows a company, while corporate finance manages a company. A corporate finance professional deals with day-to-day financial operations and handles short- and long-term business goals. An investment banker focuses on raising capital.
As any other corporation, an investment bank has a finance division. They are in charge on doing all accounting, generate their financial statements and making financial decisions in terms of capitalization, operations and many other important parts of the business.
Investment bankers are financial advisors to corporations and, in some cases, to governments. They help their clients raise money. That may mean issuing stock shares, floating a bond issue, negotiating the acquisition of a rival company, or arranging the sale of the company itself.
An investment banker advises corporations, governments, or other entities on how to raise capital, as well as acquisitions, mergers, and sales of businesses. Investment banking is a type of banking involving organizing large financial transactions such as mergers or initial public offering (IPO) underwriting.
Corporate finance and investment banking are very different in terms of their aims and purpose. Investment banking helps businesses raise capital in a variety of ways, such as mergers and acquisitions, as well as selling securities, while corporate finance helps organizations acquire funding and manage their assets.
What does a corporate banker do? Corporate bankers interview corporate and private clients, discussing their financial needs and giving financial advice when appropriate. They're able to prepare lending agreements with clients and often ensure that they keep files and corporate records available and organized.
An investment banker performs three basic functions: underwriting, distributing, and advising.
The four main areas of investment banking activity are Capital Markets, Advisory, Trading and Brokerage, and Asset Management.
The primary functions of the department are accounting and reporting, accounts receivable, accounts payable, payroll, cash receipts, cash management and investments.
What do investment bankers do for dummies?
They take in deposits from consumers and businesses, and then lend out the money to companies or consumers. But the duties of investment banks are quite different. Instead of taking deposits, investment banks sell securities.
Investment banking is essentially a financial service provided by a finance company or a banking division to help large multinational corporations in their investment plans. Along with large companies and organisations, this service also helps high net worth individuals and governments to raise or create capital.
Salary and Job Outlook
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) projects that securities, commodities and financial services sales careers—which include investment bankers—will grow by 7% from 2022 to 2032. This projected growth is faster than the 3% growth projected for all occupations nationwide.
An investment banker works for a financial institution and is primarily concerned with raising capital for corporations, governments, or other entities. The investment banking field is popular because it is typically well-paid.
Can you become a millionaire as an investment banker? It is possible to become a millionaire as an investment banker, but it is not easy. Investment bankers typically earn salaries in the $200,000 to $700,000 range, with bonuses that can bring their total income up to several million dollars per year.
Position Title | Typical Age Range | Base Salary (USD) |
---|---|---|
Associate | 25-35 | $175-$225K |
Vice President (VP) | 28-40 | $250-$300K |
Director / Senior Vice President (SVP) | 32-45 | $300-$350K |
Managing Director (MD) | 35-50 | $400-$600K |
While investment banking is a subset of corporate financing, the type of work you might do in either field can differ. Where corporate financing focuses on helping organizations maximize their worth through acquiring capital for expansion and consolidation, investment banking focuses on more narrow investment needs.
A career in corporate finance means you would work for a company to help it find money to run the business, grow the business, make acquisitions, plan for its financial future and manage any cash and other assets.
While finance requires some mathematics training and some knowledge and skills in accounting and economics, it's not necessarily more difficult than any other field of study, particularly for people with an aptitude for math.
- Analytical ability.
- Numeracy skills.
- Verbal and written communication skills.
- Very good interpersonal skills.
- Negotiation skills.
- Discretion.
- Attention to detail.
- The ability to prioritise, manage time and work under pressure.
How stressful is corporate banking?
If you work in an investment banking division (IBD), or pretty much any other sector of financial services, you are likely spend a healthy part of your day dealing with career-related stress. The working hours, the responsibilities, the external pressures to deliver consistent compelling results – they all add up.
Often, these services and loans are not very profitable by themselves, especially in a low-interest-rate environment. Instead, corporate bankers aim to win and retain clients who then hire the bank for M&A deals, debt and equity issuances, and other transactions with higher fees.
Managing Director
The Managing Director sits at the highest level of the investment bank hierarchy, and he/she is responsible for the profitability of the bank.
For those seeking a career in investment banking, a bachelor's degree in finance is a prerequisite. Other potential acceptable majors include bachelors in economics or bachelors in business supplemented with a minor in finance.
The typical structural hierarchy of an investment bank includes investment analysts, associates, vice presidents, senior vice presidents, and a managing director.
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