And Finally…

Happy Friday

pfm was intrigued to learn that Credit Suisse has introduced a new scheme called “Protecting Friday Nights”, which gives investment bankers a whole 17 hours of time off at the weekend.

Reuters reports that the bank has told staff to leave work by 7pm on a Friday night and not to return until at least Saturday lunchtime, unless there is a big deal in the works, obviously.

What’s more amusing is that this is part of a drive by investment banks to soften their image and stop bankers leaving for cushier jobs in private equity, according to City AM.
pfm wonders why banks would think that working in private equity is “cushy”: could it be the promise of a large carried interest percentage?

Many investment bankers leave for jobs in private equity, because – as Charlie Hunt, a headhunter at Private Equity Recruitment, says – “private equity is often seen as a more interesting role and offers greater challenges in the long-term.”

However, managers are also more likely to have 48 hours off at weekends. “When private equity managers are not working on a deal their hours are also less intense than those worked by bankers,” he adds.

It would be interesting to know what bankers are going to do with all of the free time on their hands: will they use the extra hours to spend time with family or friends, or will they spend the time browsing for their next job in private equity, perhaps?

Fantasy fundball

As Europe gears up for the 2016 UEFA Championship, the international soccer tournament held every four years, some investment firms are clearly more excited than others.
Allianz Global Investors has taken the game to a whole new level and has introduced Fundball, as it is unofficially known, which aims to replicate the fun and competitive edge of traditional fantasy football, with a financial twist, according to the firm.

The stocks selected for Fundball will “represent” their country as the football tournament unfolds and, just like regular fantasy football, players who log on to the website are able to compete in private leagues against their friends, family and colleagues.

This is just one example of the happy marriage between finance and football. A few years ago Enact, the small-cap turnaround fund managed by private equity firm Endless, went one step further and hired former England footballer Danny Mills to sit on its advisory board.

Clearly a superhero both on and off the pitch, Mills and the board have gone on to invest in four companies; the most high-profile being the West Cornwall Pasty Company, which was saved by a group of investors including Enact after it went into administration.