Top investment bankers are involved with billion-dollars deals daily and, as a result, this job can be intellectually fulfilling and exciting, but also very stressful (both physically and mentally)—especially when deals go bad or advice they provided turns out to be not so good. Investment bankers frequently travel to meet with clients and to industry conferences; this time away from home can be stressful on family life. The New York Times describes investment banking as a “relentless client-driven, client-service business…life on Wall Street is a never-ending push to close deals, often by sheer will, and then go on the prowl for new deals and new fees.”
Each year, Vault.com compiles a list of the best investment banking firms in terms of prestige. In 2024, the leading firms were:
- Goldman Sachs & Co.
- Centerview Partners
- J.P. Morgan
- Evercore
- Morgan Stanley
- PJT Partners
- Lazard
- Moelis & Company
- Qatalyst Partners
- Perella Weinberg
- Bank of America Corp.
- Guggenheim Securities
- Citigroup
- Jefferies
- Barclays Investment Bank (Americas)
- Accountants
- Auditors
- Chief Executive Officers
- Chief Financial Officers
- Commodities Brokers
- Compliance Managers
- Financial Analysts
- Financial Consultants
- Financial Institution Officers and Managers
- Financial Institution Tellers, Clerks, and Related Workers
- Financial Quantitative Analysts
- Financial Services Brokers
- Hedge Fund Investor Relations Specialists
- Hedge Fund Relationship Managers
- Investment Banking Analysts
- Investment Banking Associates
- Investment Banking Sales Brokers
- Investment Banking Traders
- Investment Fund Managers
- Investment Professionals
- Investment Underwriters
- Mergers and Acquisitions Attorneys
- Mutual Fund Wholesalers
- Private Bankers
- Regulatory Affairs Managers
- Regulatory Affairs Specialists
- Wealth Management Associates
- Wealth Management Investor Relations Specialists
