Best languages for IB

<p>What are the best languages for an undergrad to learn at this point if he or she wishes to pursue a career in investment banking? What's the value of languages like Arabic or Chinese versus one like German in the IB world?</p>

<p>Mandarin and Cantonese. To a lesser extent, Portuguese, Russian, and Dutch.</p>

<p>Japanese could be useful too.</p>

<p>German too</p>

<p>Why German? What is the M&A/IPO activity like in Germany? What are your thoughts on market and general industry trends in Germany? Have you done due diligence on companies in Berlin, Frankfurt, Dortmund, and Stuttgart and determined that they are solid leads? Are macroeconomic conditions telling you that Germany is a country that is going to be fairly active in the international markets within the coming years, in spite of the economic downturn?</p>

<p>
[quote]
Zeitler said the chances are "good" that Germany's economy this year will grow 2.0 percent, adjusted for the number of working days, and 2.3 percent in real terms. The Bundesbank forecast growth next year at 1.4 percent in real and adjusted terms.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Thomson Financial doesn't seem to keen on Germany in this market. Low growth rates, increased reserve rates and interest rates, less debt available, lower liquidity -- doesn't seem like Germany is a hot bed for investment activity. You always want to be ahead of the curve, not behind it.</p>

<p>My question stands -- why do you suggest German as a language? What, because it's spoken by a lot of people? Or did you write "German" just because that's the foreign language you took in high school?</p>

<p>There are already many people who are native chinese work on Wall Street. Even there are demands, there are no lack of supplies of chinese speaking people. Learn Japanese.</p>

<p>Ad hominem attacks aside, johnnyhoward3, you still haven't answered my question: "Why German?"</p>

<p>
[quote]
Second, believe it or not, German is not just spoken in Germany! Switzerland is actually an epicenter of financial activity, and you can see this in the fact that several of the bulge brackets are Swiss!

[/quote]
</p>

<p>No, this is not a sufficient answer. If you think Switzerland is "an epicenter of financial activity" you have NO IDEA about anything in the global markets. I'll let you try again.</p>

<p>They don't speak German in Switzerland, they speak French, Italian, and Swiss German(a bit similar to German, but different).</p>

<p>Ignorant question... Why mandarin and cantonese?</p>

<p>So can someone who wants to work in IB earn big bucks in Switzerland? and what language's the best for living there..</p>

<p>Which country does Wall street mostly focus on?</p>

<p>VBA and C++, definitely. You need VBA for excel modelling, and all the backend software is written in C++.</p>

<p>Good looks, test. Spot on.</p>

<p>Matlab, R, C#</p>

<p>Matlab and C are more applicable to trading than to investment banking</p>

<p>So have I got it made? Half white/half chinese malay, fluent in cantonese/mandarin/english</p>

<p>is it the more languages that you know the better? is 3 enough?</p>

<p>which is the easiest to learn? Well, I mean which language is similar to English/Chinese?</p>

<p>yeah..the whole deal on swiss german, it is different, but swiss german speakers still understand and communicate well with "regular" german speakers. Although I do know from German friends that they (the germans) like to make fun of the austrian and swiss german accent.</p>

<p>PS. german is spoken in germany (duh), switzerland, austria and liechtenstein (sp?)</p>

<p>
[QUOTE]
Which country does Wall street mostly focus on?

[/QUOTE]
</p>

<p>I can always count on syncastar to say the dumbest thing in any thread.</p>