The average banking MD generates $4.5m in revenues. Beware falling below that
Given that banking revenues are semi-back but maybe not to the extent expected, now may be a good moment to revisit what's required if you want to stay in the game.
Data from BCG Expand, the research and benchmarking arm of Boston Consulting, indicates that the average managing director (MD) across investment banking (M&A and equity and debt capital markets) at major banks has generated $4.5m of revenues each year across the last five years.
When all levels of banker, from analyst to MD are added into the mix, the average revenue generated per head falls to $2.5m a year across the cycle. Even in bad years, Amrit Shahani, managing director of BCG Research, says the average banker across all levels generates $1.6m in revenues. In down years, Shahani says MDs alone generate $3m.
BCG Expand's figures help elucidate what's required to rank favourably on rival intelligence firm Tricumen's spider chart. Shown below, this shows which banks generated high revenues per head in the first nine months of last year, and which banks didn't. The closer a bank is to the centre, the lower its banking revenues per head.
Revenues per head vary per firm. Brennan Hawken, a senior UBS banking analyst, suggested this week that Moelis & Co. has been generating $8m per MD. Robey Warshaw, the British boutique run by former Morgan Stanley banker Simon Robey, generated £85m of revenues last year but employed only 14 people who therefore generated £6m ($7.5m) each. Lazard is even more ebullient and is targeting $10m per MD by 2028.
Data from Dealogic indicates that 2025 has been mixed for M&A bankers so far. Energy and natural resources bankers have started well. Real estate bankers have not.
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