Big opportunities, big money for M&A bankers

26 July 2007

2 minute read

Big opportunities, big money for M&A bankers

Employment opportunities for investment bankers are increasing in the Middle East, as cash-rich local companies look for buyouts or mergers to build their international reputation.

It's a trend that's creating opportunities for global investment companies. Goldman Sachs, for example, is poised to reap US$11.3bn in advisory fees from a multi-billion dollar mega-merger in the Middle East.

Goldman, which moved into a new Dubai office in March after gaining a banking licence last September, is acting as the sole financial adviser to Emirates Bank International (EBI) and National Bank of Dubai (NBD) on their merger.

It's the second M&A mandate the Wall Street bank has completed in the region in less than two months, after it worked on the US$11.6bn sale of General Electric's plastics business to Saudi Basic Industries, Saudi Arabia's largest non-oil company, in May.

Lehman Brothers is offering a fairness opinion to EBI, while Morgan Stanley is doing the same for NBD. Both banks are also building their Middle East operations.

"The market is very active for investment bankers and we are doing a number of searches in the region," says Russell Adam of Akamai Financial Markets. He adds that demand is hottest for bankers across sectors such as financial institutions, industrials, leisure, and telecoms, media and technology.

With fees soaring, pay is commensurately healthy. An investment banker with seven years' plus experience can expect to get US$250k plus bonus (dependent on success and revenues) and a full relocation contract. Bankers with three to four years' experience can expect salaries of US$80k to US$150k per annum, plus family air tickets, full family insurance and a child education subsidy.

AUTHOReFinancialCareers Gulf

Insider Comment

Wo
Wow
14 August 2007
Any positive comments about Singapore or Hong Kong? I am from Canada and have the same view as other participants regarding the experience in UAE. Can't leverage here in North America. Sure money is there but no turning back, unless you run your own business.
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An
Anonymous
2 August 2007
you got that par the wrong way round. the big banks are there to MAKE money from advisory fees, not to INVEST their money in a questionable economic region where all that glitters is nothing but hopes and false dreams and dramas
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An
Anonymous
1 August 2007
Whatever the situation might be, big financial institutions such as Merrill Lynch and Deutsche Investments have come to the region and set up offices to invest surplus funds in local and international money markets, fixed-income and marketable securities as well as equity indexes. News has come out that a major private equity deal has been finalized lately in the gulf. Acknowledgments goes to our global investment bank, our "Arabian House", all the talents in the gulf, and to the bankers in the gulf, afterall, they have been around for 10 years. All have been helpfull. Will make sure to check for valuable news every once in a while. Chao!
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An
Anonymous
1 August 2007
and of course, NDB and EBI are small banks which nobody in the west has heard of, similarly to the bank of zimbabwe or bank of bangladesh. who cares about such small banks. They are nothing compared to Goldman Sachs or Morgan Stanley.
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Anonymous
28 July 2007
you will notice he has answered all irrelevant points : what about middle east experience being totally worthless in the west? How many people come back to have good jobs in the west? I work in the west and when I review Cv's of people coming from Middle east, I totally write off what they have there in a under developed market, because things in the west move so quickly. I speak to so many bankers who come to London to do MSC course and they all say the same things. Like the SUKUK is nothing but a plain vanilla bond, forget about complex derivatives, you haven't even got the legal and IT system to cope with counterparty credit derivatives. Like I said, gulf experience is worthless in the west.
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