Dow Jones Survey of CFOs Shows Loss of Trust in Investment Banks, High Level of Satisfaction With Investment Bankers

Banker Relationship and Commitment to Customer Keys to Winning and Keeping Clients


NEW YORK, Nov. 9  /PRNewswire/ -- A Dow Jones & Company survey of top financial executives found that while investment banks may have lost their clients' trust, investment bankers themselves have managed to maintain client confidence and loyalty.

Of more than 220 chief financial officers, treasurers, and heads of mergers & acquisitions and debt capital markets surveyed across 13 global industry sectors, 27% said they had lost trust in banks, mainly due to fear of insolvency. However, survey respondents blamed the actual institutions, not the bankers, and were satisfied with their bankers in all areas ranging from ability to provide analysis to banker support and involvement. The most important factor that respondents considered when choosing a bank was the relationship with the bank and the bank's commitment to the customer.

The survey, titled "Less Love, Less Money: C-Suite Insight for Investment Bankers," was commissioned by Dow Jones Investment Banker's editorial team in conjunction with London-based research and consultancy firm ClientKnowledge, to identify the trends and issues of most importance to corporate finance executives and departments.

Survey respondents cited J.P. Morgan as their number one investment bank when it comes to providing debt and equity capital markets and mergers & acquisitions. Deutsche Bank closely trailed J.P. Morgan in both debt and equity capital markets while Goldman Sachs was ranked second for mergers and acquisitions.

"Banks may need to be more flexible and provide increasingly tailored services to attract and retain clients," said Adam Smallman, global managing editor for investment banking, Dow Jones & Company. "Building a deeper, more knowledgeable relationship with clients may help to bring back trust at the institution level."

In regard to accessing capital, most respondents said that it is easy; however; nearly one third are experiencing difficulties. When analyzed by industry, the responses showed that countercyclical and cash-positive industries are getting more attention. For example, 100% of healthcare responses indicated raising capital is easy, whereas 60% of those in the automobile industry said they are finding it difficult. Additionally, the survey revealed that access to credit is more difficult and, if found, the terms are tougher and transaction fees are on the rise. Sixty-four percent thought that transaction fees have increased, with transaction-based fees representing 56% of the fees charged.

"The lack or high cost of capital is preventing deals getting done in the industries requiring restructuring, such as automobiles," said Justyn Trenner, CEO and Principal, ClientKnowledge.

Smallman added, "Greater care for clients includes bankers generating fresh thinking relevant to the specific needs of their clients. This research shows that trust has been lost but it can be earned back."

An overview of these finding can be found at http://www.dj.com/djib/CSuiteInsight. For more information about Dow Jones solutions for investment bankers, visit http://www.solutions.dowjones.com/investmentbanker. For more information about Dow Jones, visit http://www.dowjones.com/.

About Dow Jones Investment Banker

Dow Jones offers news and information solutions for investment bankers. Dow Jones Investment Banker is a flexible solution that offers the deep intelligence edge that every banker needs to provide advice, generate ideas and connect to clients. The best of Dow Jones -- news, opinion, research, data visualization, executive connections -- is delivered in a suite of customizable components designed for smooth integration into the proprietary portals and applications essential to investment bankers and analysts.

About Dow Jones

Dow Jones & Company (http://www.dowjones.com/) is a News Corporation company (Nasdaq: NWS, NWSA; ASX: NWS, NWSLV; http://www.newscorp.com/). Dow Jones is a leading provider of global business news and information services. Its Consumer Media Group publishes The Wall Street Journal, Barron's, MarketWatch and the Far Eastern Economic Review. Its Enterprise Media Group includes Dow Jones Newswires, Dow Jones Factiva, Dow Jones Client Solutions, Dow Jones Indexes and Dow Jones Financial Information Services. Its Local Media Group operates community-based information franchises. Dow Jones owns 50% of SmartMoney and 33% of STOXX Ltd. and provides news content to radio stations in the U.S. 

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