Jefferies Joins The Fray: Investment Bank Becomes Latest To Bump First Year Analyst Pay To $110,000

It turns out Goldman Sachs wasn’t the very last investment bank to bump pay for its junior bankers. Jefferies announced this week that it was going to be raising pay for its first year analysts in the U.S. to $110,000. 

The bump in pay is a raise of $25,000 from their previous starting salary of $85,000 per year. 

Second year analysts will make $125,000, up from $95,000 and third year analysts, called associates, will move up to $150,000 per year from $125,000, according to Bloomberg. 

Bonuses for the firm, which are typically handed out in August are “expected to be high” this year as well, according to the report. 

Jefferies’ pay bumps match that of Goldman Sachs, who raised pay by 30% just weeks ago.

First year analysts at Goldman will now also make $110,000 per year in their first year and $125,000 their second year, FT reported days ago. Senior associate ranks will see their pay bumped to $150,000, similar to Jefferies. 

The move puts both Jefferies and Goldman Sachs at the top of the heap in terms of starting pay package terms. 

As we reported weeks ago, there had been significant discussion at Goldman about whether or not boosting junior banker salaries could be counterintuitive. But the rising tide of all banks lifting their pay finally caused Goldman to give in. Jefferies followed shortly thereafter. 

There had been pushback from Senior Executives at Goldman, who argued that bumping up salaries mid-year could set a “dangerous precedent” and break from the company’s long-held “pay for performance” compensation structure. 

Goldman and Jefferies follow steps taken by banks like Citigroup, which offered an increase of up to $25,000 last month to move its fixed salaries to $100,000 per year. JP Morgan and Barclay’s also lifted salaries to $100,000, from $85,000 at the end of June, FT noted. Bank of America and Wells Fargo increased salaries by $10,000 each, as well.

Finally, as of this week, Credit Suisse is also reported to be bumping their first year analyst pay to $100,000, according to Bloomberg.

Recall, just weeks ago, we noted that Cantor Fitzgerald’s CEO, Howard Lutnick, was pushing back on junior bankers that think they have life too tough. Lutnick said that junior bankers complaining about long hours and stressful demands should “rethink their career choice”.

Lutnick’s comments followed 13 junior bankers at Goldman complaining about their workload earlier this year in a slide deck that was released to the public. They claimed to be working 100 hour weeks and experiencing declining physical and mental health. The public scrutiny caused other banks to offer bonuses and rewards to retain their younger talent.. 

But when interviewed last week, Lutnick broke from the crowd, stating: “Young bankers who decide they’re working too hard — choose another living is my view. These are hard jobs.”