Morning Coffee: JPMorgan's resumption of junior banker hiring is not related to burnout. Carried interest and its foibles

efinancialcareers.com:

The last time investment banks went on a hiring spree for investment banking analysts and associates, it was after the pandemic and juniors at Goldman Sachs had been complaining of 100-hour weeks and insufferable mental health. Together with booming deals, this contributed to a rush of recruitment. Nearly four years later, is history ready to repeat itself?

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Maybe. M&A is still weak, but if you listen to senior bankers, the pipelines are (perpetually) strong. Rates are falling. And ever since the May death of Leo Lukenas, a Bank of American associate who had allegedly been working long hours, the focus on junior bankers' insufferable working hours is back. JPMorgan imposed an 80-hour limit on junior bankers in September. 

Now, JPMorgan seems to be on a hiring spree. Business Insider reports that the bank has posted nine new roles for analysts and associates on its own website in the past few weeks. A recruiter tells Business Insider that JPMorgan is «aggressively» ramping up its M&A team. It's not because it needs more juniors to compensate for everyone who's burned out and no longer working 100-hour weeks. It's down to ebullience about 2025. JPMorgan is even hiring two new US-based banking recruiters to help it hire the new people it needs.   

Who are all these new juniors that JPMorgan wants? The bank is currently looking for multiple associates in mid-market banking in the US, for EMEA analysts and associates to join its pool, and for associates everywhere from Singapore to Frankfurt. The emphasis is on 'plug and play' juniors who've worked elsewhere. Associates need three years' experience. Analysts need to have been either interns or analysts elsewhere. 

It's an