Two fourth tier banks that merit your attention
Things are not looking good for the big beasts of investment banking.
Over the course of this week, Goldman Sachs' share price has fallen by (another) 9%.
JPMorgan isn't faring much better: its share price is down 24% since April and analysts at KBW have put together some research suggesting it wouldn't be the end of the world if JPMorgan lost its trading operations in their entirety. US analyst Dick Bove points out that JPMorgan, "is facing challenges in its business model almost everywhere."
In Goldman's case, the problem is dodgy CDO deals. In JPMorgan's, it's the threat of regulation.
Away from the limelight, however, lesser known entities are thriving. If you don't want to work for a Goldman or a JPMorgan, you could always consider these less prestigious alternatives.
1) Standard Chartered
Long the darling of the emerging markets, Stan Chart's share price is up 7% this year.
Earlier this week, analysts at BarCap issued a research note claiming that Standard Chartered, "finds itself in a position that most of its counterparts would envy." Namely, it has a strong balance sheet, excellent exposure to high growth emerging markets, and is uniquely well positioned (partly thanks to its strong balance sheet) to cope with regulatory reform.
Moreover, wholesale banking is an increasingly important part of what Stan Chart does. Wholesale has become the, "dominant force," point out BarCap analysts: in the first half of 2009 it accounted for 81% of pre-tax earnings.
Last month, Standard Chartered announced plans to hire 2,000 more people in Singapore by 2012. The bank also plans to double its Middle East revenues over the next three to five years, and has got 86 open vacancies in its wholesale business. Unfortunately, only 2 are in London.
2) Religare
In March, it emerged that Religare Enterprises, the financial services company formed by Indian billionaire Malvinder Singh, intended to hire 80 people this year as it expands beyond India.
Yesterday, it was reported that Religare's hired Phil Hodey, one of the ICAP equities refugees, as its global chief operating officer in equities. This follows several other senior hires since January, including at least three from UBS. In May, Religare issued a statement that it intends to hire in equity research, equity capital markets and corporate advisory.
Less promisingly, Religare's positions are unlikely to be in London either. Hodey is moving to Singapore, and all the bank's highlighted vacancies appear to be in India.
