€85,000 in the first year....

Young aspiring bankers are the hottest ticket in town at investment banks in both the USA and Germany. And guess what? The starting salaries reflect just how sought after they are! Some of the big money houses have just jacked up those paychecks, with rookie analysts fresh out of college potentially pocketing up to a whopping €85,000 in their first year. Talk about making it rain!

According to reports from "Bloomberg News," Morgan Stanley recently upped their starting salary by nearly $15,000 to hit that sweet €85,000 mark, with whispers of even more cash – €90,000 to be exact – in the second year. And it's not just the folks across the pond benefiting; word on the street is that German employees are getting a slice of the pie too, as JP Morgan Chase and Citigroup follow suit with their own salary hikes. Though, mum's the word on the exact figures.

Now, €85,000 straight out of college is a boatload of dough, even by banker standards. A study by job recruiter Stepstone reveals that the average starting salary in Germany post-college hovers around €45,000. So, yeah, you could say these young bankers are hitting the jackpot!

But hold your horses, folks. These salary bumps didn't just fall out of the sky. The banking world is notorious for its grind, and many bankers aren't shy about airing their grievances. Just ask the junior investment analysts at Goldman Sachs, who spilled the beans on social media about clocking in a mind-boggling average of 98 hours a week since the start of 2021. Yep, you read that right – 98 hours! They described their work conditions as "inhuman," painting a picture of burnout, sleep deprivation, and dwindling mental and physical health. Talk about living life in the fast lane!

But hey, every cloud has a silver lining, right? With the chatter about brutal work conditions heating up, it seems the big banks are scrambling to keep their talent and reel in fresh faces. Hence, the salary hikes!

Now, while the big international banks are jumping on the salary train, the German state-owned banks are playing it cool – for now, at least. According to a spokesperson from Landesbank Baden-Württemberg (LBBW), they're sticking to the script with standard wage developments and market rates. And as for Hypo-Vereinsbank? Well, they're not hitting the panic button on salary changes just yet.