How to Research a Bank's Healthcare Practice

Introduction

Researching a bank's healthcare practice is the highest-return preparation activity for the "why this bank?" and "why this group?" questions that arise in every healthcare IB interview. Interviewers can immediately distinguish between candidates who have done genuine research and those who are reciting generic talking points from the bank's website. The five-dimension framework provides a systematic approach to building the knowledge you need.

Dimension 1: League Table Positioning

Identify where the bank ranks in healthcare M&A advisory and healthcare capital markets (ECM, DCM). League tables are published by Dealogic, Refinitiv, and Bloomberg and are often summarized in industry publications. The ranking itself is less important than understanding the bank's competitive position: is it a top-5 healthcare advisor, a mid-tier bank trying to move up, or a specialized boutique with expertise in a specific niche?

League Table Context

Healthcare league tables break down differently than overall M&A rankings. A bank that ranks 15th in overall global M&A might rank 5th in healthcare M&A due to specialization. Boutique banks like Centerview, Lazard, and Guggenheim often rank higher in healthcare advisory than their overall M&A presence would suggest. Understanding this distinction shows the interviewer that you have done targeted research on the healthcare practice, not just looked at the bank's overall ranking.

Dimension 2: Recent Deal Activity

This is the most important dimension. Identify 3-5 specific healthcare transactions the bank has advised on in the last 12-18 months. Use the bank's press releases, deal announcements, and industry databases. For each deal, understand the bank's role (buy-side or sell-side), the sub-sector, and the deal size. Being able to reference a specific transaction ("I noticed your group advised on the sell-side of [Company] in the [sub-sector] space, which was interesting because...") is dramatically more effective than generic praise.

Dimension 3: Team Structure

Research who leads the healthcare group (the group head or co-heads), how the team is organized (by sub-sector, by product, or as generalists within healthcare), and the group's approximate size. LinkedIn is the primary tool for this research. Understanding the team structure helps you tailor your answers: if the bank organizes healthcare coverage by sub-sector, emphasize your interest in the specific sub-sector you would cover.

Dimension 4: Sub-Sector Specialization

Every bank's healthcare group has areas of relative strength and weakness. Some are known for pharma/biotech M&A (Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, Centerview). Others have strong healthcare services practices (Jefferies, William Blair, Harris Williams). Some specialize in medtech (Piper Sandler, Baird). Understanding the bank's sub-sector reputation helps you position your interest authentically.

Dimension 5: Strategic Direction

Assess whether the healthcare group is in growth mode (hiring aggressively, expanding into new sub-sectors), maintaining its position (stable team, consistent deal flow), or in transition (recent leadership changes, strategic pivots). Growth-mode groups are often the best targets for entry-level candidates because they are actively hiring and may have more flexibility in their candidate profiles.

The final article covers how to network into healthcare IB, providing strategies tailored to different candidate backgrounds.