Two or three years in investment banking open doors that few other career starts can. These are called "exit opportunities": the roles people target when leaving investment banking. Here is an honest overview of what exists, when you can access it and the profile you need to show.
Why exit opportunities exist
Investment banking trains fast. In a few years, an analyst has built dozens of valuation models, read hundreds of pages of legal and financial documentation and worked under pressure with senior counterparts. Employers on the other side know it, and hire this profile for three reasons:
- Technical skills: financial modelling, valuation, reading a company quickly;
- Reliability under constraint: meeting deadlines, quality of deliverables, handling pressure;
- Network: former colleagues end up on both sides of the table (funds, corporates, advisory).
This does not mean the exit is automatic: it is prepared, and it usually comes down to the quality of your deals and your network.
Private equity and funds
Private equity
This is the best-known and most selective exit. Funds hire analysts or associates with two to three years of M&A or financing experience to analyse targets, model deals (LBO) and monitor portfolio companies.
- Profile sought: strong education, good exposure to real transactions, excellent modelling.
- Timing: recruitment often runs through specialised headhunters, sometimes very early, with cycles that vary by market.
- Useful sources: France Invest 🔗, the association of French private equity investors, publishes resources on the sector and its players.
Other funds
Beyond private equity:
- Infrastructure, private debt, real estate: smaller teams, but fast-growing, that value profiles used to financing.
- Hedge funds and asset management: more accessible to quantitative or market-oriented profiles.
- Family offices: less visible, often reached through networks.
📊 Compare: look at finance salaries before choosing: pay evolves very differently depending on the route.
Corporate and in-house M&A
This is the most common exit, and not the least interesting.
- Corporate development / in-house M&A: you lead a group's acquisitions and disposals, with a longer horizon than banks.
- Finance department (FP&A, treasury, investor relations): a route to positions of responsibility in a company.
- Strategy and business development: for those who want to move away from pure finance.
Why it appeals: a better work-life balance, a more direct link to the company's activity, and often a clear path to CFO. The trade-off is variable pay that is generally lower than in banks or funds.
Startups and entrepreneurship
Some former bankers join startups, sometimes as CFO or head of fundraising, sometimes by founding their own company.
- CFO or head of finance role: fundraising, modelling and investor-relations skills are directly useful.
- Starting a company: network and financial credibility ease the first fundraisings.
- Risk: less certain income and a longer horizon. Keep it for profiles who accept that uncertainty.
🔄 Changing track more broadly: our guide on career change into finance covers transitions from other sectors.
Choosing your moment
There is no universal "right time", but there are markers:
- After 18 to 24 months: you have seen deals end to end. Often the first relevant moment for private equity.
- After 3 to 4 years: more responsibility and a fuller view, useful for a corporate role or a more senior fund position.
- Beyond 5 years: doors stay open, but positioning must be sharper (sector, type of deal).
Questions to ask yourself:
- What did I like in my job, and what weighed on me?
- What is the main criterion: pay, balance, responsibility, impact?
- What network can I activate right now?
Preparing your exit
- Keep your resume up to date: an opportunity sometimes arrives within days.
- Maintain your network: networking in finance plays a major role in these hires.
- Choose your deals when you can: those that close are the most useful to showcase.
- Quantify your achievements: deal size, scope, outcome.
A resume ready when the opportunity comes
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