Investment Banker
Investment bankers advise companies, governments and private owners on raising money, buying or selling businesses and restructuring debt, and see each transaction through to completion.
- Median salary
- $134,300
3.5%vs last year, before tax
- People employed
- 9,900
1.0%vs last year
- Projected growth
- +12.7%
to 2035
- AI exposure*
- Moderate
- automation risk
- Average hours
- 47/wk
+7h vs all jobs
- Shortage status
- Not in shortage
national
Investment bankers work in the corporate finance divisions of banks and boutique advisory firms, advising clients on capital raises, mergers and acquisitions and debt restructuring. Deal teams are small, built around an analyst, an associate and a senior banker who holds the client relationship, and junior staff do most of the modelling and document work. The role is often confused with stockbroking or funds management, but investment bankers advise on and execute transactions rather than trade securities or manage portfolios.
How much do investment bankers earn?
The median full-time salary for an investment banker is $134,300 per annum, before tax, up $28,600 since 2018.
Base salary is only part of the package: the annual bonus is tied to the bank's results and your own review, and it can make up a large share of total earnings in a good year. Pay steps up sharply between analyst, associate and vice president levels, and larger banks and established boutiques generally pay more than small advisory firms. Deal flow matters too, because bonuses shrink in lean years when few transactions complete.
What does an investment banker do day to day?
The list below is what fills most weeks; the exact mix shifts with seniority and whatever stage the current work is at.
- Building and reworking financial models to test what a deal looks like at different prices and assumptions
- Preparing pitch books, valuations and comparable company analysis for clients weighing a sale, a takeover or a capital raise
- Working through due diligence with lawyers and accountants to check that the figures behind a transaction hold up
- Updating pricing and timing advice as markets move during a live deal
- Drafting the updates and board papers a senior banker will present to the client
What skills do investment bankers need?
Employers look for financial analysis and modelling, financial reporting, strategy development, backed by Bloomberg Terminal fluency and strong client relationships and advisory.
Specialist skills
- Financial analysis and modelling
- Financial reporting
- Strategy development
- Data analysis
- Risk and internal controls
Software and tools
- Bloomberg Terminal
- Excel (advanced)
- FactSet
- Pitchbook
- Capital IQ
General skills
- Client relationships and advisory
- Stakeholder management
- Written communication
Is the job growing?
About 9,900 people work as investment bankers in Australia, and employment is projected to grow 12.7% over the decade to 2035. That's healthy, above-average growth, and the role should stay in solid demand.
How do you become an investment banker?
Here's the path most investment bankers take, step by step.
- 1Complete a bachelor degree
Finance, commerce, economics, law or a quantitative field such as mathematics or engineering are the usual routes, and marks matter because graduate intakes draw from a large applicant pool.
- 2Land a penultimate-year internship
Australian banks recruit most of their graduates from summer internship programs, with applications usually opening a year before the placement. The internship is paid and is the main way into a graduate offer.
- 3Start as a graduate analyst
The first two to three years are the training ground, covering modelling, documentation and deal support across sectors or products. Promotion to associate, or a move to another firm or another part of finance, usually follows that stretch.
- 4Add a postgraduate qualification or professional credential if you need one
A master's in finance or the CFA Program can help career changers and people coming from a non-finance degree, though neither substitutes for time on live transactions.
- 5Settle into a coverage or product specialisation
Bankers tend to specialise by sector, such as resources, healthcare or technology, or by product, such as mergers and acquisitions, debt or equity capital markets. The specialisation shapes which deals come your way and where you move next.
Ready to apply as an investment banker?
Whether you're working toward becoming an investment banker or already are one and want a hand with the next step (sharpening your resume for ATS screening, tightening your cover letter, or knowing what you'll actually be asked at interview), here are examples grounded in this specific role, not generic templates.
What jobs can an investment banker move to?
Moving into Finance Manager typically comes with the biggest pay rise, worth $16,700 a year more on average.
| Move to | Typical pay change | Overlap | Retraining |
|---|---|---|---|
| Finance Manager Investment bankers bring deal analysis, forecasting and capital planning to corporate finance management, though accounting knowledge may need formal study.Known move | +$16,700 | 40% | reskill |
| Private Equity Associate Investment bankers bring valuation, due diligence and deal structuring skills to private equity investing and portfolio work. | +$13,900 | 48% | short course |
| Venture Capitalist Investment bankers bring financial modelling, market assessment and transaction execution to venture capital investment decisions. | +$13,900 | 50% | short course |
| Investor Relations Manager Investment bankers bring capital markets knowledge and financial communication skills to managing company investor relations. | +$13,900 | 63% | minimal |
| Management Consultant Investment bankers bring financial modelling, transaction analysis and client presentation skills to management consulting engagements.Known move | −$7,200 | 30% | reskill |
Moves are chosen from Jobs and Skills Australia's Data on Occupation Mobility, which follows income tax records between 2011-12 and 2020-21, together with entry requirements and skill overlap. A known move is one people were seen making in that data. Pay change compares median full-time pay for the two roles.
Who works as an investment banker?
The typical investment banker is 45 years old; 69% are men, 81% work full-time, and full-timers average 47 hours a week.
- 45
- Median age
- 31%
- Female share
- 81%
- Full-time
- +7h
- vs all-jobs avg
What's it like being an investment banker?
Investment banking runs on the deal clock rather than a weekly routine: a transaction is live, the team works to a deadline set by the client and the market, and a quieter stretch follows before the next one. The hours are long and uneven, with late nights clustering around signing and completion, and weekends that can disappear when a process speeds up. Much of what a junior banker does is detailed, repetitive and reviewed closely by the people above them, and the appeal is being close to large decisions early in a career.
What people like
- Graduates are staffed onto live transactions. Analysts sit in on calls and work on models that feed a decision being made that week, rather than on background research that may never be used.
- The work has a clear finish. A transaction either signs or it doesn't, so effort has a visible end point instead of a rolling list of open projects.
- Small teams with a high standard. Deal teams are drawn from a narrow recruitment pool, so the modelling and drafting around you is usually being checked by people who have done it many times.
- Skills that travel to other parts of finance. Valuation, financial modelling and transaction experience are sought after in private equity, venture capital, corporate development and investor relations.
What people find hard
- Hours set by the deal, not the diary. A transaction moving to its next stage can wipe out a planned weekend, and the timing is rarely something you control.
- Repetitive work early on. Formatting, data entry and version control take up real time before you are trusted with the judgement calls on pricing and structure.
- Thin margin for error. A wrong formula in a model that reaches a client can undo a week of work, so checking and rechecking is a standing part of the job.
- Layered review. Work passes through an analyst, an associate, a vice president and a managing director, and each layer can send it back for rework.
Based on our synthesis of professional-body surveys and public accounts of the role, not first-person verified reviews.
Which industries employ investment bankers?
Financial and Insurance Services employs the largest share of investment bankers, followed by Rental, Hiring and Real Estate Services.
Top employing industries
- 1Financial and Insurance Services
- 2Rental, Hiring and Real Estate Services
- 3Public Administration and Safety
Ranked by employment share; the source doesn't publish an exact percentage per industry.
| Bachelor degree | 46% | |
|---|---|---|
| Postgraduate | 31.5% | |
| Year 12 or below | 8.6% | |
| Diploma / Advanced Diploma | 8% | |
| Certificate III/IV | 3.5% |
Will AI replace investment bankers?
AI reaches a moderate share of this job. It speeds up the groundwork, pulling comparable company data, building first-pass models and drafting pitch book pages, which is where junior bankers spend much of their time. The parts that decide the outcome, pricing a transaction, negotiating terms and keeping a client's confidence through a difficult process, remain human work.
Share of typical working time by exposure level
- Building and updating financial modelsSoftware can assemble a first-pass discounted cash flow or comparable company analysis in minutes, but the assumptions behind it still need a banker to choose and defend.30%high
- Drafting pitch books and client documentsFirst drafts and standard pages come together quickly from templates and prior deals, leaving the team to sharpen the argument and check every figure.25%high
- Negotiating and executing the transactionPrice, timing and terms are settled in calls and meetings with the counterparty, and no model carries the client relationship through that.25%low
- Due diligence and data room reviewTools can extract and summarise contracts and filings from a data room, while deciding which findings would move the price stays with the deal team.20%moderate
Moves least exposed to AI
These career moves from investment banker work are rated low for AI exposure:
- Finance Manager
Solid skill overlap (40%), reskill to get there, and a low automation-risk profile.
- Management Consultant
Some skill overlap (30%), reskill to get there, and a low automation-risk profile.
Common questions about becoming an investment banker
Straight answers to the questions people ask most.
How much do investment bankers earn?
Investment bankers earn a median of $134,300 per year before tax, and that figure covers full-time workers in the middle of the pay range. Total earnings depend heavily on the annual bonus, which moves with the bank's results and the individual's performance. Treat the median as a midpoint rather than a starting salary.
How do you become an investment banker?
The usual route is a bachelor degree in finance, commerce, economics or a quantitative field, followed by a summer internship in your penultimate year and then a graduate analyst position. Banks fill most junior roles through those internship programs, so when you apply matters as much as what you study.
Are investment bankers in demand?
Investment bankers are currently not in shortage, and employment in the role is projected to grow 12.7% over the decade to 2035. Openings are concentrated in graduate and internship intakes at a limited number of banks, so the practical step is building the degree and internship early rather than applying widely later.
How much of an investment banker's job can AI do?
AI already handles part of the analytical groundwork: building and updating models, pulling comparable company data and drafting the first version of pitch book pages. It does not set the price, hold the client relationship or sit in a negotiation, and those parts take up a growing share of a senior banker's week.
What can investment bankers move into?
Private equity and venture capital are common moves, because valuation work, due diligence and deal structuring carry across directly, and private equity associates typically earn $13,900 more. Investor relations manager is a shorter step again, built on the same capital markets knowledge and financial communication. Moving into a corporate finance manager role trades the deal cycle for budgeting and capital planning, and usually needs some accounting study.
How many hours do investment bankers work?
Full-time investment bankers average 47 hours a week, but that average flattens out a pattern of ordinary weeks and weeks when a live deal takes over evenings and weekends. The load follows deal flow rather than the calendar.
Related roles
- Finance Manager
- Private Equity Associate
- Venture Capitalist
- Management Consultant
- Investor Relations Manager
- Investment Analyst
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