Video summary

How to become an Investment Banker in India - Complete Roadmap

Main summary

Key takeaways

Business

Business-focused summary (Investment Banking career roadmap in India)

What investment banking actually is (operational role)

Investment banking is not trading or “market gyaan.” Investment bankers work behind the scenes to support corporate restructuring and capital markets transactions, including:

  • Helping large companies raise capital
  • Supporting mergers & acquisitions (M&A) and corporate acquisitions
  • Advising on mergers, buy/sell deals, and going-to-market activities (including listing)
  • Performing valuation and negotiation work to determine “at what price” deals happen

Concrete examples mentioned (valuation/M&A/listing decisions):

  • Reliance → buy Future Group (and at what price)
  • Tata Group → buy Air India (and at what price)
  • Zomato → list in the stock market (pricing/decision implied)
  • Lenskart → list in the stock market (pricing/decision implied)

Entry paths / “playbooks” to become an investment banker (3 routes)

1) Top-college path (“campus recruiting playbook”)

Target: join top undergrad / MBA institutions where global investment banks recruit directly.

Examples of institutions named:

  • SRCC, St. Stephen’s
  • IITs: Delhi, Bombay, Kharagpur, Kanpur
  • IIM integrated programs: IIM Indore, IIM Rohtak
  • MBA/Top business schools: IIM Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Calcutta, ISB, XLRI

Mechanism: campus hiring by firms like:

  • Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley, Citibank

2) Normal-college + skills path (“skills-first funnel”)

Target: compensate for weaker campus placement by building demonstrable finance capability.

Build technical skills to access adjacent roles:

  • Excel
  • Financial modeling
  • Valuation
  • M&A

Career funnel described:

  • Start in boutique investment banking roles
  • Or move into equity research / supporting back-end firms
  • Use performance and growth to eventually shift toward top firms

3) Credibility-building path (“credential stack”)

Target: build market credibility using recognized certifications.

Primary credential emphasized: CFA

Other certifications mentioned: NISM (positioned as secondary, framed as not beating CFA)

Guidance given:

  • If you’re from a top B-school/top college: CFA is still recommended as a “best two feathers” combination.
  • If you’re from an average college: CFA is more strongly suggested to build credibility and improve odds.

Compensation ranges & what they imply (numbers)

The content pushes back on overly optimistic marketing claims (e.g., “one crore package” immediately) and provides ballpark progression.

Stated salary ranges by level (India, approximate):

  • Analyst 1: ₹10–20 lakhs
  • Analyst 2: ₹20–30 lakhs
  • Associate (post-MBA): ₹30–40 lakhs (video also references up to ~₹45 lakhs)
  • Vice President: ~₹60–90 lakhs
  • Director: ₹90 lakhs+

Key implication (timeline): high earnings (e.g., ₹90 lakhs/1 crore claims) are not immediate—it takes ~6–10 years of heavy work (hours on Excel, pitch decks, valuations).

Work reality / fit criteria (operational constraints)

  • Work hours: 16–18 hours/day
  • Typical workload themes: financial modeling, valuations, Excel work, pitch decks
  • Trade-off: no social life

“Survival criteria” / personal fit checks mentioned:

  • Are you a problem solver?
  • Do you love finance and number crunching?
  • Can you handle valuations and understand corporate restructuring?
  • Do you have the discipline to work with limited social life?

Actionable recommendation embedded:

  • If you want communications or business development, or you dislike long, modeling-heavy work, the speaker suggests you may be a poor fit for investment banking.

Hiring/strategy logic for choosing your path

The speaker emphasizes no one-size-fits-all approach:

  • Choose among the 3 routes based on your situation:
    • top school access
    • skill-building
    • credentialing

Underlying strategy described as a combination of:

  • Access (top colleges/campus recruiting)
  • Capability (modeling/valuation)
  • Credibility (CFA)

Frameworks / playbooks explicitly or implicitly referenced

  • Three-path roadmap / decision framework

    • Top-college path
    • Skills-first path
    • Credential stack (CFA-centered) path

  • Skills stack (core technical toolkit)

    • Excel → financial modeling → valuation → M&A exposure

  • Credential strategy

    • CFA prioritized; NISM mentioned as secondary

Key metrics / KPIs mentioned (career economics)

  • Work hours: 16–18 hours/day

  • Salary bands (by level): ₹10–20L, ₹20–30L, ₹30–40L (45L), ~₹60–90L, ₹90L+

  • Time-to-high-salary rebuttal: ~6–10 years of effort implied

  • No explicit growth KPIs (e.g., revenue, CAC, LTV, churn) were provided.

Presenters / sources

  • Presenter: Kavish (speaker; name used in subtitle text: “Kavish”)

Original video