What Is The Bulge Bracket In Banking? (2024)

Updated September 22, 2021

Written by the WikiJob Team

What Is the Bulge Bracket?

The Bulge Bracket is a term in the financial world for some of the world’s largest and most profitable investment banks. The clients of these banks are usually high-profile organisations including governments, large institutions and corporations.

Banks in the Bulge Bracket category all provide financing and advisory services, and they specialise in market making, sales and research for products such as commodities, credit, rates and equities. These banks are also actively involved in the development of new financial products such as credit default swaps, mortgage-backed securities and collateralised debt obligations (CDOs).

The History of the Bulge Bracket

The term Bulge Bracket is derived from the way in which an investment bank was listed. Investment firms were ranked in ‘tombstones’ or brackets of influence; the ‘bulge bracket’ was the top bracket.

As such, the Bulge Bracket has usually included the most prestigious and dominant banks in the industry. Belonging to the Bulge Bracket is a symbol of prestige and dominance, and in the early days it was market share that often determined who made it onto the list. Banks such as First Boston, Salomon Brothers and Drexel Burnham – none in existence any longer – have previously been members of the Bracket.

The term is not used as much today as it once was. This is largely because of significant growth in the number of banks in the commercial sector, and the volatility of the industry at the present time.What Is The Bulge Bracket In Banking? (1)

The Bulge Bracket comprises the world's most influential investment banks.

Which Banks Comprise the Bulge Bracket?

There is now much argument about which banks comprise the Bulge Bracket, as there isn't a specific set of criteria, and the rules surrounding who should be included or excluded are not clear.

The Bulge Bracket has featured some of the most well-known banks over the years, including Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs, Citi, Morgan Stanley, J.P. Morgan and UBS. Banks in the Bulge Bracket are huge, multinational corporations, as are many of their clients.

The current Bulge Bracket consists of 9 banks:

  • Bank of America Merrill Lynch
  • Barclays
  • Citi
  • Credit Suisse
  • Deutsche Bank
  • Goldman Sachs
  • J.P. Morgan
  • Morgan Stanley
  • UBS

Which Banks Used to Be Part of the Bulge Bracket?

Over the years many banks have come and gone from the Bulge Bracket, including:

  • In 1977, Kuhn Loeb and Co merged with Lehman Brothers, creating the firm Lehman Brothers, Kuhn, Loeb Inc.
  • First Boston, which was purchased by Credit Suisse in 1988 and then rebranded to Credit Suisse First Boston
  • In 1990 the UK bank Morgan, Grenfell and Co was acquired by Deutsche Bank
  • Dillon, Read and Co, which was acquired by The Swiss Bank Corporation in 1997
  • Salomon Brothers, which was purchased by the Travellers Group in 1998 and eventually rebranded to Citigroup
  • Bear Stearns, which was acquired by J.P. Morgan in 2008
  • In 2008, Lehman Brothers was declared bankrupt, after which Barclays purchased the Lehman operations in North America

Want an advantage over other candidates? Check out this guide on how to get an investment banking job, written by an ex-Goldman Sachs staffer. Alternatively, JobTestPrep has plenty of information and practice tests related to the application process at investment banks.

Is the Bulge Bracket Still Relevant as a Term Today?

Since the financial crisis in 2008, banks are often referred to as belonging to either Tier One, Tier Two or Tier Three. Tier One (J.P. Morgan, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs, Citi and Morgan Stanley) and Tier Two ( Deutsche Bank, Credit Suisse, Barclays and UBS) are the equivalent of the Bulge Bracket. In the third tier are banks including BNP Paribas, SocGen and HSBC.

These tiers are likely to be in a constant state of movement, and in the future banks may find themselves switching between tiers or dropping out completely.

What Is The Bulge Bracket In Banking? (2024)

FAQs

What Is The Bulge Bracket In Banking? ›

Bulge bracket or bulge bracket banks in the investment banking industry are defined as a group comprising of the world's largest multinational investment banks whose investment banking clients are usually the largest of largest, such as big corporations, institutional investors and governments.

What is considered a bulge bracket bank? ›

As a catchall term for this class of large global investment bank, "bulge bracket" commonly refers to Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs, Barclays Capital, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Morgan Stanley, and UBS.

How hard is it to get into bulge bracket bank? ›

Extremely Competitive to get into Bulge Bracket Banks: Hundred thousands of applicants apply for an internship and a job at Bulge Bracket Banks, and only around 2% receive offers.

What banks are in the Tier 1 bulge bracket? ›

Bulge Bracket Investment Banks (BBs) – JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs, and Morgan Stanley; Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Citi; Credit Suisse and Barclays; Deutsche Bank and UBS.

Is Wells Fargo a bulge bracket? ›

Is Wells Fargo a bulge bracket? No. Despite being a very reputed and established firm in the market, Wells Fargo is an in-between-a-bank, in other words, a middle-market firm. It falls between a bulge bracket and a boutique bank.

Are large sums of money safe in the bank? ›

The FDIC insures your bank account to protect your money in the unlikely event of a bank failure. Bank accounts are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), which is part of the federal government. The insurance covers accounts containing $250,000 or less under the same owner or owners.

What asset size is a large bank? ›

FDIC- and Federal Reserve-supervised “large banks” are banks with assets of at least $1.503 billion as of December 31 of both of the prior two calendar years.

What is the hardest bank to get into? ›

Goldman Sachs is generally regarded as the leading investment bank in most business areas, and is the toughest Bulge Bracket investment bank to break into. Goldman has a very strong reputation within the industry and among corporations. They advise on the majority of high profile M&A deals and other major transactions.

Can a bank be too big to fail? ›

A too-big-to-fail bank is a financial institution that would cause significant economic damage if it went out of business. Also known as “systemically important” banks, they each have hundreds of billions or trillions of dollars in assets. They play important roles in virtually every sector of the economy.

How much do traders at big banks make? ›

Investment Banking Trading Salary
Annual SalaryMonthly Pay
Top Earners$180,500$15,041
75th Percentile$129,000$10,750
Average$99,751$8,312
25th Percentile$56,000$4,666

What bank do millionaires put their money in? ›

Millionaires tend to turn to private banks for a variety of reasons. Since they offer a wide range of financial products, services, and expertise under one roof, the element of convenience can be very enticing. There are also several perks and more favorable options and rates, making the bank very attractive.

Who is a Tier 2 bank? ›

Tier 2 is designated as the second or supplementary layer of a bank's capital and is composed of items such as revaluation reserves, hybrid instruments, and subordinated term debt. It is considered less secure than Tier 1 capital—the other form of a bank's capital—because it's more difficult to liquidate.

What is a Tier 3 bank? ›

Tier 3 capital is capital banks hold to support market risk in their trading activities. Unsecured, subordinated debt makes up tier 3 capital and is of lower quality than tier 1 and tier 2 capital.

Is Morgan Stanley a Tier 1 bank? ›

Tier 1 – J.P. Morgan, Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, Bank of America, Morgan Stanley.

What tier is Goldman Sachs bank? ›

However, it is still possible to get a firm view of tier one banks. Presuming that Goldman Sachs is unquestionably part of the top tier, Goldman's judgement on its peer group is probably a fair indication of the other banks in this category.

What are the big 4 investment banks? ›

In the U.S., the top investment banking companies include the Big Four Banks — JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citigroup, and Wells Fargo.

Is it safe to have more than $250000 in a bank account? ›

Some examples of FDIC ownership categories, include single accounts, certain retirement accounts, employee benefit plan accounts, joint accounts, trust accounts, business accounts as well as government accounts. Q: Can I have more than $250,000 of deposit insurance coverage at one FDIC-insured bank? A: Yes.

Should I withdraw my money from the bank 2023? ›

Despite the recent uncertainty, experts don't recommend withdrawing cash from your account. Keeping your money in financial institutions rather than in your home is safer, especially when the amount is insured. "It's not a time to pull your money out of the bank," Silver said.

How much money is too much to keep in one bank? ›

How much is too much cash in savings? An amount exceeding $250,000 could be considered too much cash to have in a savings account. That's because $250,000 is the limit for standard deposit insurance coverage per depositor, per FDIC-insured bank, per ownership category.

What do banks consider a large deposit? ›

A large deposit is defined as a single deposit that exceeds 50% of the total monthly qualifying income for the loan.

What is the #1 bank in America? ›

JPMorgan Chase. Headquarters: New York, N.Y. JPMorgan Chase is the largest bank in the U.S., with roughly $3.20 trillion in consolidated assets.

How many banks have failed in 2023? ›

There are 3 bank failures in 2023. See detailed descriptions below.

Which banks are in trouble in 2023? ›

List of Recent Failed Banks
Bank NameCityState
First Republic BankSan FranciscoCA
Signature BankNew YorkNY
Silicon Valley BankSanta ClaraCA
May 8, 2023

What is the most financially stable bank in the US? ›

5 Safest Banks in the U.S.
BankAssets
JP Morgan Chase$3.2 trillion
Bank of America$2.42 trillion
Citi$1.77 trillion
Wells Fargo$1.72 trillion
1 more row
May 16, 2023

What is the strongest bank in USA? ›

1. JPMorgan Chase. Chase Bank is the consumer banking division of JPMorgan Chase. It currently has more than 4,700 branches and more than 16,000 ATMs.

What banks are least likely to fail? ›

The Safest Banks in the U.S.
  • JPMorgan Chase.
  • U.S. Bank.
  • PNC Bank.
  • Citibank.
  • Wells Fargo.
  • Capital One.
  • M&T Bank Corporation.
  • AgriBank.
Feb 23, 2023

Is JPMorgan too big to fail? ›

JPMorgan Chase is now too big to be 'too-big-to-fail,'” Gordon said in an interview with Marketplace's David Brancaccio. “[The] current administration doesn't like big — they're going after big.

Why do most banks fail? ›

The most common cause of bank failure occurs when the value of the bank's assets falls to below the market value of the bank's liabilities, which are the bank's obligations to creditors and depositors. This might happen because the bank loses too much on its investments.

Which big bank pays the most? ›

Investment Banking Firms Ranked by Pay
  • Lazard.
  • Rothschild.
  • Guggenheim.
  • Bank of America.
  • Citi.
  • Goldman Sachs.
  • JP Morgan.
  • Morgan Stanley.

Who makes the most money in banking? ›

The highest paying jobs in retail banking usually belong to loan officers and major corporate executives, such as the chief financial officer (CFO) and chief risk officer (CRO).

Who makes more traders or bankers? ›

Over the course of nine years, an investment banker can expect to earn 25% more than someone with the same career in sales & trading. They'll also earn over 50% more than someone in equity research. The majority of the difference comes from the huge bonuses that bankers get.

Can you keep $100 million dollars in the bank? ›

The only way one can deposit $100 million in cash with insurance is to open several accounts to maintain the regulation given by FDIC on the maximum insurance amount. FDIC offers separate insurance coverage for money deposited by individuals in the various classification of legal ownership.

How much money in the bank is considered rich? ›

You might need $5 million to $10 million to qualify as having a very high net worth while it may take $30 million or more to be considered ultra-high net worth. That's how financial advisors typically view wealth.

Where do wealthy people put their money if not in the bank? ›

Where do millionaires keep their money? High-net-worth individuals put money into different classifications of financial and real assets, including stocks, mutual funds, retirement accounts and real estate. There were 24.5 million millionaires in the U.S. in 2022. And only 21% of them inherited money.

What are Tier 4 banks? ›

Banks and credit card companies are Tier 3 lenders. Tier 4: investors. Tier 4 is a move outside of institutional lending and commercial credit to the world of venture capitalists, angel investors and other private investors.

What is a Tier 1 investment bank? ›

Abbreviation for Tier 1 executive. 3. Investment banking. Tier 1 investment banks are the largest globally across multiple product categories. They include JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, Morgan Stanley and Bank of America.

What is Tier 1 Tier 2 and Tier 3? ›

Tier 1 Suppliers: These are direct suppliers of the final product. Tier 2 suppliers: These are suppliers or subcontractors for your tier 1 suppliers. Tier 3 suppliers: These are suppliers or subcontractors for your tier 2 suppliers. These tiers can extend longer than three.

Is capital One a Tier 1 bank? ›

The bank's Tier 1 capital was primarily bolstered by higher Additional Tier 1 reserves, to the tune of $3 billion, which compounded a $1.4 billion rise in Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) funds.

How many banking tiers are there? ›

A bank's capital consists of tier 1 capital and tier 2 capital, and these two primary types of capital reserves are qualitatively different in several respects (there was formerly a third type, conveniently called tier 3 capital).

What is a Tier 1 asset? ›

Tier 1 capital is the core measure of a bank's financial strength from a regulator's point of view. It is composed of core capital, which consists primarily of common stock and disclosed reserves (or retained earnings), but may also include non-redeemable non-cumulative preferred stock.

What tier is Wells Fargo? ›

Wells Fargo: tier 1 capital ratio 2022 | Statista.

What tier bank is Citi? ›

Tier 1 Capital | All Banks.

What tier bank is TD Bank? ›

TD Bank demonstrated financial stability and strength, with a Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) ratio of 15.5%, outperforming major competitors. The bank's profitability, as measured by Return on Equity (ROE) and net income per employee, highlights its solid financial management and scalability.

Is Citigroup a Tier 1 bank? ›

Citigroup's Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) Capital ratio and Supplementary Leverage ratio (SLR) reflect certain deferrals based on the modified regulatory capital transition provision related to the Current Expected Credit Losses (CECL) standard.

Is Citi a bulge bracket? ›

As a catchall term for this class of large global investment bank, "bulge bracket" commonly refers to Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs, Barclays Capital, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Morgan Stanley, and UBS.

Which is better Citi or Goldman Sachs? ›

Goldman Sachs scored higher in 1 area: Career Opportunities. Citi scored higher in 6 areas: Culture & Values, Diversity and Inclusion, Work-life balance, CEO Approval, Recommend to a friend and Positive Business Outlook. Both tied in 3 areas: Overall Rating, Senior Management and Compensation & Benefits.

What is the most respected investment bank? ›

Bankers continue to regard Goldman Sachs as the world's most prestigious bank, followed (as always) by Morgan Stanley and JP Morgan. Credit Suisse and UBS lost the most ground in 2022 while LionTree Advisors' reputation improved the most in the eyes of bankers.

What is the most successful investment bank? ›

Goldman Sachs is widely known as the most prestigious investment bank on Wall Street. The bank's interns receive phenomenal training, hands-on experience, and the opportunity to rotate across many groups and desks.

What is the deal size for bulge bracket investment banks? ›

There is no accepted definition of the term bulge bracket. However, in most parts of the world, it is used to refer to famous multinational investment banks. Bulge brackets are pretty choosy about who they do business with. They are generally only involved in deals if the deal size is over $1 billion.

What is the difference between middle-market investment banks and bulge bracket? ›

The biggest difference between middle markets and bulge brackets lies in the average deal size: middle markets handle deals worth from $10M to $500M while massive bulge brackets tend to focus on the largest projects, usually over $1B in value, though they may go lower depending on the market.

What is the difference between elite boutique investment banks and bulge bracket? ›

There are two main categories of investment banks: elite boutiques and bulge brackets. Elite boutiques are smaller organizations that focus solely on investment banking, while bulge brackets are large firms that provide many different corporate finance solutions.

What are the different brackets of investment banking? ›

The firms engaged in the investment banking industry are commonly classified into three categories: bulge bracket banks, middle-market banks, and boutique banks.

How much do bulge bracket traders get paid? ›

Sales and Trading Compensation

Base: $85,000 is the industry standard at most bulge bracket investment banks. Bonus: $50,000-$75,000.

Why is it called bulge bracket? ›

The term “bulge bracket” originates from the order of banks listed on the “tombstone” or prospectus of a deal. The banks are listed in sequential order based on the role they play in the deal, from most important to least important. The font size of the banks at the top are larger and bolder – they “bulge” out.

Can you go from middle market to bulge bracket? ›

Within IB, it's feasible to go from a boutique to a middle market bank, or a middle market bank to an elite boutique or bulge bracket.

What is considered middle market in banking? ›

Middle market banking refers to an area of commercial banking that provides services to local governments, nonprofits, and companies with around $50 million to $1 billion of total revenue. In order to serve these clients, middle-market investment banks may need to specialize in specific areas of expertise.

What is a middle market investment bank deal size? ›

Criteria for Middle Market Investment Banks

Deal size – Deals or transactions with mid-market firms generally range from $10 million to $500 million.

Is bulge bracket better than boutique? ›

Compared to bulge bracket banks, boutiques are more flexible in terms of hierarchy, structure, and operations. They may not have the prestige or resume power of a bulge bracket, but employees across the board are usually happier at boutique banks.

Why middle market is better than bulge bracket? ›

Unlike bulge brackets, middle markets work with companies with market capitalizations of about $50 million to around $500 million and up. Middle markets are usually more specialized than bulge brackets, but less specialized than boutiques.

What is the most prestigious investment banking group? ›

Bankers continue to regard Goldman Sachs as the world's most prestigious bank, followed (as always) by Morgan Stanley and JP Morgan. Credit Suisse and UBS lost the most ground in 2022 while LionTree Advisors' reputation improved the most in the eyes of bankers.

What is the difference between middle market and elite boutique? ›

In short, the elite boutiques tend to work on larger deals than middle market firms and regional boutiques, with transaction values often above $1 billion USD. They often compete with and advise alongside the bulge brackets on deals in that size range.

What is the highest position at a bank? ›

The Managing Director sits at the highest level of the investment bank hierarchy, and he/she is responsible for the profitability of the bank. It takes a long time, considerable skill, and even some good fortune to get to this level.

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