VAULT.COM UNVEILS 2011 BANKING PRESTIGE RANKINGS
DESPITE BAD PRESS, GOLDMAN SACHS REMAINS MOST PRESTIGIOUS BANK FOR 11TH STRAIGHT YEAR; BIG BANKS RETURN AT EXPENSE OF SMALL BOUTIQUES
New York, NY, (September 15, 2010) Vault.com, the source of ratings, rankings and insight for the finance industry, has released its 2011 Banking Prestige Rankings, and despite a year of negative press and an SEC lawsuit, Goldman Sachs remains virtually untouchable, named the most prestigious bank by its peers for the 11th straight year. Goldman’s stranglehold on the top spot marked a return of the big banks, squashing last year’s surge by smaller boutique firms.
According to Derek Loosvelt, Finance Editor at Vault.com, “Goldman again taking the top spot in our Banking Prestige Rankings might seem to conflict with the public’s perception of the firm, but despite all the negative press Goldman has received during the past year, the firm is still on its feet, landing large deals and banking billions of dollars. And it’s done a pretty good job of handling all of the negative press—some deserved, some not—thrown its way during the past 12 months. It successfully slid the SEC suit under the rug and has largely stayed out of headlines since. And as our survey results show, Goldman Sachs is still the name bankers want most on their resume.”
As part of Vault’s annual Banking Survey, conducted this past April through June, over 1,300 banking professional of all levels were asked to assess their peer banking firms on a scale of 1 to 10 based on prestige (they were unable to rate their own firm, and were asked to rate only firms with which they were familiar).
The Top 10 most prestigious firms based on Vault’s Annual Banking Survey are:
1. Goldman Sachs
2. The Blackstone Group
3. J. P. Morgan Investment Bank
4. Morgan Stanley
5. Credit Suisse
6. Lazard
7. Deutsche Bank AG
8. Barclays Capital
9. Greenhill & Co.
10. UBS Investment Bank
According to banking professionals outside Goldman, the firm is still the “gold standard of banking.” True, its golden reputation has been “a bit tarnished lately,” but the bank is still “a profit making machine,” “makes the most money,” “brings in the best deals,” has "a great brand name” and is viewed as the “King of the Street.” Underscoring the firm's reputation, one banker asks, “If you get an offer there, why would you turn it down?”
While Goldman Sachs remained on top, big banks in general showed new signs of life after a rocky 2009. Barclays Capital moving back into the Top 10, jumping three spots from No. 11 last year to No. 8 this year. UBS Investment Bank also rose, leaping from No. 14 to No. 10. And the biggest jump in the top 20 came from Bank of America, which rose nine spots from No. 21 to No. 12.
The return of big banks came at the expense of several smaller firms. Greenhill (No. 6 last year; No. 9 this year), Evercore (No. 8 last year; No. 11 this year); and Rothschild (No. 10 last year; No. 14 this year) felt the impact, as did Perella Weinberg, which made a strong attempt at cracking the Top 10 last year, coming in at No. 12, only to drop three spots to No. 15 in this year’s rankings.
Moelis & Company, which was among those leading the charge for boutique banks last year, jumping 29 spots to No. 13, fell three spots to No. 16 this year. Banking employees call Moelis a “Good M&A shop, high-end boutique” and believe it is a “Growing firm” with “employees at all levels truly helping to build a successful business.” However, the recent resurgence of the larger industry players has offset the gains Moelis made last year.
According to Mr. Loosvelt, “In 2008, most big banks suffered, booking billions of losses and laying off thousands of employees while many experienced professionals at large firms who weren't laid off became afraid of prospective compensation restrictions and took positions at boutiques. But in 2009, deal markets returned, benefiting big banks' bottom lines. Big banks, making billions of dollars like they’d done pre-2008, were again able to attract the best talent at both the lower and higher levels.”
The Vault Banking Prestige rankings release is part of Vault’s Banking 50 Rankings rollout that began on September 9, 2010. The rankings provide a comprehensive roadmap of who's who in the banking industry and a detailed perspective on the criteria considered by candidates when evaluating banking firms.
View the Complete Banking Firm Prestige Rankings.
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Jon Minners
jminners@vault.com
646-792-6205
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