What is a deal team in investment banking?

A deal team is the group of bankers assigned to one transaction. Inside the bank it is a slice of the whole hierarchy, one or two analysts, an associate, a vice president, sometimes a director, and a managing director, and around it sit the client’s own people and the outside lawyers and accountants who make the deal legal and audited. The same banker is usually on several deal teams at once.

Who is on it

The ethnographic account describes the front-office deal team as “usually composed of one or two analysts, an associate, a vice president, at times a senior vice president or director, and a managing director”[1Source 1Karen Ho, Liquidated: An Ethnography of Wall Street (Duke University Press, 2009), ch. 2, “The White-Collar Sweatshop”, p. 85.]. A guide to offerings describes a core execution team on a public offering as a managing director or executive director with a mid-level and a junior banker, sometimes generalists and sometimes specialists in the product, and notes that wider country or industry teams may join for parts of the work[2Source 2Philippe Espinasse, IPO: A Global Guide, 3rd ed. (Hong Kong University Press, 2018), §1.7.2, “The core execution team”.]. The hierarchy articleWhat is the investment banking hierarchy?The investment banking hierarchy runs from analyst to associate, vice president, director and managing director: what each rank does and how long it lasts.Jobs and ranks · revised 28 September 2026 · 887 words · 4 sources · 4 min explains the ranks; this one is about what each does on a live deal.

Who does what

The division of labour runs by rank. Analysts do the mechanics of the financial models and the basic research. Associates handle the more complex modelling, draft the pitch material and manage some of the process. Vice presidents have mostly left the modelling behind and manage the live deal, develop the pitch ideas and sometimes pitch. Directors manage at a high level and pitch clients. Managing directors are almost entirely on the client relationship, with a modest amount of time on high-level deal management[3Source 3Michael E. S. Frankel and Larry H. Forman, Mergers and Acquisitions Basics: The Key Steps of Acquisitions, Divestitures, and Investments, 2nd ed. (Wiley, 2017), “Advisor Staff”, pp. 45–46.]. The textbook’s account of the vice president adds that the rank is a principal channel to the client and coordinates the other groups inside the firm that a deal needs[4Source 4David P. Stowell, Investment Banks, Hedge Funds, and Private Equity, 3rd ed. (Academic Press, 2017), ch. 10, “Vice Presidents”, p. 224.]. On an offering the managing director will probably be on the core team, though the guide notes that managing directors are primarily dedicated to winning new mandates[2Source 2Philippe Espinasse, IPO: A Global Guide, 3rd ed. (Hong Kong University Press, 2018), §1.7.2, “The core execution team”.].

The working group

A bank’s deal team is one part of a larger working group. On the company’s side, senior management sets the strategy, chooses the advisers and makes the key decisions; the corporate development group brings the bankers’ ideas to management and works on execution; the board recommends or rejects the transaction and owes its shareholders fiduciary duties; and business unit heads, in-house and outside lawyers, investor relations, human resources and accountants all take part[5Source 5David P. Stowell, Investment Banks, Hedge Funds, and Private Equity, 3rd ed. (Academic Press, 2017), ch. 4, “Other Merger and Acquisition Participants”.]. A guide for sellers says the team should at minimum include an investment banker or financial adviser for the market, the buyers, the valuation and the negotiation; an accountant for the financial statements and the tax consequences; and a lawyer for the housekeeping, the confidentiality agreements, the letter of intent and the definitive agreement[6Source 6Andrew J. Sherman, Mergers & Acquisitions from A to Z, 4th ed. (AMACOM, 2018), “Step 1: Selecting the Seller’s Team”, pp. 18–20.]. The bankers are the ones without an hourly rate: because the bank is paid on success, the client has every reason to press for the most senior people on the team[3Source 3Michael E. S. Frankel and Larry H. Forman, Mergers and Acquisitions Basics: The Key Steps of Acquisitions, Divestitures, and Investments, 2nd ed. (Wiley, 2017), “Advisor Staff”, pp. 45–46.].

How the team works in practice

The traffic inside the team is what sets its hours. Drafts flow up from analyst to associate to vice president and come back with comments; the managing director’s changes arrive late in the day and are due the next morning, and the juniors stay until they are done[7Source 7Karen Ho, Liquidated: An Ethnography of Wall Street (Duke University Press, 2009), ch. 2, “The White-Collar Sweatshop”, pp. 85–86, and “Hard Work”, p. 97.]. One associate described being on six, seven or eight projects at once, three or four of them active, with clients calling and senior bankers wanting information by tomorrow[8Source 8Karen Ho, Liquidated: An Ethnography of Wall Street (Duke University Press, 2009), ch. 2, “Hard Work”, pp. 94–95 and 98.]. That is the reason a “deal team” is a fluid thing: the same associate is on one team that is quiet and another that is in the last week before signing.

Frequently asked questions

How many people are on an investment banking deal team?

Typically four to six from the bank: one or two analysts, an associate, a vice president, sometimes a director or senior vice president, and a managing director, with specialists joining for parts of the work[1Source 1Karen Ho, Liquidated: An Ethnography of Wall Street (Duke University Press, 2009), ch. 2, “The White-Collar Sweatshop”, p. 85.][2Source 2Philippe Espinasse, IPO: A Global Guide, 3rd ed. (Hong Kong University Press, 2018), §1.7.2, “The core execution team”.].

Who leads a deal team?

The managing director owns the client relationship and wins the mandate; the vice president runs the transaction and manages the associates and analysts on it[3Source 3Michael E. S. Frankel and Larry H. Forman, Mergers and Acquisitions Basics: The Key Steps of Acquisitions, Divestitures, and Investments, 2nd ed. (Wiley, 2017), “Advisor Staff”, pp. 45–46.][4Source 4David P. Stowell, Investment Banks, Hedge Funds, and Private Equity, 3rd ed. (Academic Press, 2017), ch. 10, “Vice Presidents”, p. 224.].

Who else is involved in a deal besides the bankers?

The client’s executives, corporate development staff, board and business unit heads, its investor relations and human resources people, and the lawyers and accountants, in-house and outside, who take part[5Source 5David P. Stowell, Investment Banks, Hedge Funds, and Private Equity, 3rd ed. (Academic Press, 2017), ch. 4, “Other Merger and Acquisition Participants”.][6Source 6Andrew J. Sherman, Mergers & Acquisitions from A to Z, 4th ed. (AMACOM, 2018), “Step 1: Selecting the Seller’s Team”, pp. 18–20.].

@misc{xlsxdev-2026-deal-team,
  author       = {{xlsx.dev}},
  title        = {{What is a deal team in investment banking?}},
  howpublished = {xlsx.dev Wiki},
  year         = {2026},
  month        = sep,
  url          = {https://xlsx.dev/wiki/deal-team}
}