Key Takeaways
- • Citigroup's co-head of North America investment banking David Friedland said private equity firms are still aggressively poaching young bankers from Wall Street, despite signs last year that the recruiting push would ease.
- • Friedland said he is "hopeful that it slows down and gets delayed," but added he is "not sure that we have seen that much of it" yet.
- • The comments were made in a Bloomberg Television interview on Wednesday, October 7, 2026, per the source article.
Summary
Private equity firms continue to aggressively recruit talented young bankers from Wall Street, according to a senior Citigroup executive, undercutting expectations that the talent competition would moderate after 2025. The remarks were made by David Friedland, co-head of North America investment banking at Citigroup Inc., in a Bloomberg Television interview on Wednesday.
Friedland expressed a hope that the trend would slow and be delayed, but acknowledged that he has not yet seen clear evidence of such a slowdown. His comments suggest that the competition for junior investment banking talent from buyout and other private equity firms remains intense heading into the close of 2026.
The article is brief and does not provide quantitative data on the number of hires, compensation levels, or specific firms involved. Readers seeking detail on the scale of the movement of bankers into private equity should consult additional reporting.
Friedland expressed a hope that the trend would slow and be delayed, but acknowledged that he has not yet seen clear evidence of such a slowdown. His comments suggest that the competition for junior investment banking talent from buyout and other private equity firms remains intense heading into the close of 2026.
The article is brief and does not provide quantitative data on the number of hires, compensation levels, or specific firms involved. Readers seeking detail on the scale of the movement of bankers into private equity should consult additional reporting.
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