US-based Cross River Bank Group has recently announced its new venture into investment banking. The Group has also appointed 2 new senior hires to co-lead the new unit. The group has appointed Benjamin Samuels and Henry Pinnell as co-head of investment banking to lead this endeavor.

Speaking on the latest appointments, Gilles Gade, founder and CEO of Cross River, says Samuels and Pinnell have been tasked with “enhancing even further our product offering to our fintech partners and beyond”.

Samuel joins Cross River directly from Morgan Stanley, where he led the organization’s global capital markets group across equity private placements and public equity deals as co-head of alternative capital solutions. And Pinnell formerly served as a senior managing director for securities unit of Sillicon Valley Bank.  

When we look at SMEs or even big businesses, they have become house hold names. While most of the entrepreneurs share some traits in common and one of the important factors they share in common is most of the successful entrepreneurs have worked with investment bankers in order to make their dreams into a reality. Investment bankers are one of the key players in bringing an organization to the stock market. Investment banking is the glue which connects businesses, financial markets as well as investors. Investment bankers help their clients in facilitating IPOs, balance their day books, increase revenue & identify growth opportunities.

In this article let us learn how to secure a job in investment banking, right from educational and licensure requirements for investment subfields as well as necessary skills.

Investment bankers are financial professionals. They assist companies in gaining the capital resources through several activities which include connecting businesses to investors & supporting IPOs (Initial Public offerings). Also, to the institutional clients the investment bankers offer a range of financial advisory services. A typical day in an investment banker’s life depends on the experience of the banker and the requirements of the client. However, most of the investment bankers not only long, but sometimes stressful hours.

Capital raising

One of the largest components of being an investment banker is capital raising and the process involves selling securities to investors, facilitating IPOs as well as book building, which is the practice in estimating an organization’s value before it goes public on stock market. Investment bankers offer hedge, mutual & pension fund advisory services & facilitate M&A (Mergers & Acquisitions) as well.

Job Outlook & Responsibilities of an investment banker

According to Payscale data from January 2024, the average salary for investment bankers is around $118, 200/year. Securities, commodities & financial services sales careers that include investment bankers will grow by seven percent until 2032, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). This projected growth is faster than the three per cent growth that is projected for all occupations across the nation.

Since the United States is an international center for finance, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) projects that the growth of international/foreign economies will result in further employment in the American financial sector.

Investment bankers should perform several duties. It should be typically done in fast-pace, and high-pressure environments. An investment banker should conduct financial analysis & research, create client-facing presentations, build relationships with the existing & new clients & perform valuations.

There are several types of investment banking and two of its subcategories include Corporate Finance and Industry coverage. While corporate finance deals with all financial matters of any business organization, Industry coverage refers to investment banking for a particular sector. For instance, investment bankers in the healthcare industry or technology field with deep-rooted expertise in that specific industry may render financial advisory services to clients in that particular field.

Important Skills for Investment Bankers

Investment bankers should have sharp mathematical & analytical skills coupled with good communication capabilities. Some of the top skills an investment banker should posses include analytical skills, attention to detail, decision making abilities, math skills and knowledge of ethics and compliance.

The process of becoming an investment banker

The process of becoming an investment banker requires numerous years of school, earning a license and finally getting experience on the job.

A bachelor’s degree

Investment bankers begin by earning a bachelor’s degree – in the field such as statistics, business administration, or finance. While the degree takes 4 years of full-time study, students can also join internship or obtain work experience when completing the degree.

Register with FINRA (Financial Industry Regulatory Authority)

Investment bankers are required to get a license from FINRA. This helps the right to sell investment products & services to the license holders. However, earning a FINRA license comprises passing a series of qualification exams. After obtaining their license, in order to maintain industry & practices the investment bankers should enroll themselves to continue education.

IIM Ranchi offers investment banking course which helps candidates to become a certified investment banking professional. The other top B-schools that offer investment banking courses include IIM-Kozhikode, IIM-Kolkata, IIM-Indore, IIT Guwahati. Other top institutes that offer investment banking courses include The Wallstreet School, Data Trained, Imarticus Learning and others.

The New York Institute of Finance offers the Investment Banking Certificate – a professional certification in 4 core disciplines in business and finance. It offers this intensive program which consists of digital distance learning courses which can be taken virtually from anywhere in the world.

Specific entry-level investment banking jobs

Aspiring investment bankers most often begin their careers at entry level positions which render foundational experiences in business & finance. Some of the entry-level opportunities that aspiring investment bankers should pursue are Analyst, Associate, Research assistant & Rotational analyst programs.

Some of the top investment banking companies that recruit investment bankers include JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Bank of America, Barclays, Citi, HSBC, Deutsche Bank, Wells Fargo, Credit Suisse AG, Axis Bank and others.