Two Minor Buzzkills Bankers Must Face This Summer
Friday was a good news day overall. The jobs report was excellent; employers did a ton of hiring in May and, even better, wages are increasing. But none of that really has any direct effect on bankers. It’s two very small pieces of news – minor changes that may disturb the daily activities of bankers – that caught people’s eye.
First, cell phone policy changes. Business Insider reported that several firms are asking bankers to dump their expensive Blackberry devices they’ve used for years, forcing them instead to rely on their own phones with software encryption. J.P. Morgan will make “virtually all staff” turn in their bank-provided Blackberries within the next six to 12 months.
Credit Suisse has already reclaimed “the majority” of its work-issued phones, according to the report. Just 4,000 Credit Suisse Blackberries are currently operational. Citigroup isn’t imposing a strict mandate like J.P. Morgan and Credit Suisse, but is offering big incentives to hand in their work phone.
Bankers are griping about the changes, telling Business Insider that expense reports will become more cumbersome and liabilities could become exposed when personal messages share the same home as work emails.
Elsewhere, there’s drama on Wall Street’s summer playground. Uber has been banned in East Hampton, which is actually a big deal for people who enjoy the nightlife there. Taxis there are brutal – it can sometimes take over an hour to get one – and virtually no residence is walk-able to bars, restaurants and clubs. Uber has been operational in the Hamptons since 2012. There will be more people sipping rosé at home this year, it appears.
Is Fig the Worst Sector Group (eFinancialCareers)
If you're a junior in IBD, should you do everything you can to avoid being put in a FIG group?
Improve Yourself, Not Your Resume (eFinancialCareers)
If you want to work in banking, your resume must be perfect. But what if this focus on gaining resume points, which is key to many an aspiring finance professional’s existence, is all wrong?
CFA Popularity on the Rise (Bloomberg)
A record number of people took one of the three levels of the CFA exam on Saturday. A total of 159,889 candidates registered, up 7.4% from last year. Meanwhile, here are some fun and oftentimes gross CFA horror stories, including one where a test taker used a sink for something that he shouldn’t have.
John Noyce, a technical analyst at Goldman Sachs whose weekly report was widely followed across the industry, has died. He was 36. He lost a long-running battle with cancer.
DB Puts Equities Staffers on Leave Amid Probe (Bloomberg)
Authorities are looking into whether Deutsche Bank helped some Russian clients launder money through stock trading. Tim Wiswell, who runs the firm’s Russian equities business, is among the employees who were placed on leave in April.
Wells Hiring in Prime Services (Financial News)
With others paring back, Wells Fargo is aggressively hiring within its unit that services hedge funds. The unit has made 12 hires this year already, including six within its capital introduction team and another three in prime brokerage.
Big Win For Merrill Brokers (WSJ)
Merrill Lynch brokers will be allowed to cut fees by 15% or more on wealthy accounts without affecting their own commission.
17 Times! (NY Times)
Presidential hopeful Marco Rubio and his wife have combined to receive 17 citations for traffic violations, including speeding, running red lights and careless driving. That’s hard to do. They have agreed to attend remedial driving school on four separate occasions.
Quote of the Day: "The job prospects for the long-term unemployed and for people out of the labor force have been picking up quite rapidly.” – Harm Bandholz, chief U.S. economist at Unicredit Bank, on the positive jobs report
This is why you fail the CFA exams
This is what your private banking salary and bonus should be in Singapore
The 9 worst things to include on your banking CV
