WSO Weekly Wrap-up

April 26, 2025

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Hey WSO Monkey,

Another week of relatable posts on the forum—the paradise (or existential dread) of family offices, discreet lateral moves, long-term career moves, and everything in between.

-Patrick

Top Discussions

  1. Family Office Is Paradise - "You say things like “I like being closer to the work” and “I get to touch everything.” You pretend you love the “low ego culture,” even though you still introduce yourself at dinners as “ex-[MF name]” just to preserve your dignity. The compensation isn’t bad. The work is light. The risk is low. The ambition inside you dies quietly. Like a candle in a cavern. You tell yourself this is real investing. You forward your old PE friends articles about HVAC consolidation and call it “long-term capital deployment.” You start to believe it. Or at least fake it well enough to not care anymore..."

  2. Intro: Experienced Trader - Q&A - "I'm an experienced derivatives trader with 18 years in the industry, working at major investment banks. I'm keen to share my knowledge and help out with questions on Trading and Risk Management, covering both technical aspects and career advice in these areas. Please feel free to tag me if you think my experience might be useful. Happy to contribute to the discussions and answer any questions anyone may have."

  3. Advice for People on How to Lateral From SA to FT - "Make sure your group doesn't find out. If they do, you won't get a return. This makes things tough because if you are performing well and are around nice people, the Analysts/Associates will start mentoring you and directly asking you if you will want to return. If you are a nice person, you will probably feel really bad lying to them..."

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Top Discussions (contd.)

  1. Banks With Best Comp + People? - "To answer your question, the best balance of comp and culture tends to be in the middle market space. HL Business Services is known for a strong "bro culture" and still pays street-level bonuses, I can't speak for other groups. Another solid option is WF. I have two college buddies there—apparently super laid-back seniors, rarely working over 80 hours a week, and still pulling in strong bonuses (better than most BBs). A lot of people say their bankers stay because of the culture and comp, I think it's just an excuse for shit exit opps. Still, if you don’t care about prestige and just want to work with decent people and make solid money, nothing wrong with WF..."

  2. RX Consulting - "I think a theory that partially explains the rising interest is that most of these interested people are undergrads, and their goal is to break into RX IB / PE, and they see RX consulting as an avenue to do that. Which would make sense, there's a fair amount of relevance in the work RX consultants do when compared to RX IB, but you're still going to need a lot of execution and putting in the work, and some amount of luck to make the jump, given how few RX IB seats open up. But it also doesn't make sense, because you don't really get into RX consulting hoping to exit into RX IB...you could do M&A or something and do that as well, and the majority of RX IB classes are from the latter group..."

  3. What Are Your Long-Term Goals? Do Most Stay in PE? - "You realize you love finance (banking or investing) and run through walls to preserve a career in finance. You kind of like finance and are lucky enough to be in a seat that has upward mobility and stick it out. You kind of like finance but are in a tough market or sector, and bail for greener pastures. You hate finance and are ambitious -> go to a startup or different career path. You hate finance and are risk averse -> eventually get pushed out mid level and flame out to some corporate career."

New Podcasts Coming in Hot 🔥

  • Lahore University to RE Investment Analyst in Saudi | Chat with Adeel Safdar

  • Oxford to Private Equity in London | Chat with Ralph Gibson | WSO Academy

Hot Jobs 💼

Senior Technology Equity Analyst - "This role is ideal for a driven professional with expertise in the technology industry, specifically AI and Crypto. We are seeking someone who thrives in a dynamic environment and is eager to contribute beyond a single role or task..."

Equity Research Analyst - "Buy-side research analyst opportunity with a family office. The analyst will work with the direct investment team and report to the Portfolio Manager. The team employs a fundamentally driven investment process and an owner’s mentality...."

Research Associate (Equity Small Mid Cap) - New York, NY - "This position will support the Small/Mid-Cap Equity research team and initially be responsible for covering multiple sectors in support of current team members."

On Deck - Training 🎓

All in Eastern Standard Time

Stay Strong,
Patrick Curtis
CEO and Founder, WallStreetOasis.com

WSO Mobile App: iOS | Android

PS - We're also always looking to add resume reviewers and WSO Mentors to our team. Set your own pay (from $40/hr to up to $400/hr) to increase or decrease mentee flow. To submit an application, go here.

PPS - Think you have an interesting story? Want to share it with our podcast listeners? Hit reply and let me know!




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