<p>At the end of the day, isn't what they both do all analysis?</p>
<p>Granted, an IB analyst may need to be smarter and more competitive than a loan underwriter; however, are there really any specific skills that differ between the two?</p>
<p>I look at Commercial and they work with cash and loans; I look at IB and they work with stocks and bonds. And so, aside from the product they are trying to analyze (company for a loan, equity purchase, acquisition, etc.), what differs?</p>
<p>Sales skills and relationship management.
At it’s core, investment banking is a sales job. The job is just as much about convincing a client to choose you as an adviser as it is to actually completely the task.
Once you’ve been selected, you will also need to convince investors to by the product (in the case of underwriting securities) or negotiate on behalf of the client (in the event of an acquisition).</p>
<p>Ability to work long hours without complaining strikes me as one.</p>
<p>Investment banking involves broader knowledge of corporate finance and business strategy in general. Underwriting is much more cookie cutter than coming up with an analysis for an M&A deal.</p>