Investment banking careers are rarely linear. Markets rise and fall. Firms grow, merge, shrink, and reinvent themselves. Deals collapse. Strategies change. And in the middle of it all, the best leaders learn how to adapt without losing who they are.

For Allan Bertie, Head of European Investment Banking at Raymond James, that lesson has been shaped across more than three decades in the industry from Schroders and DLJ to Bridgewell, Jefferies, and now Raymond James.

In this conversation, Allan shares what it takes to build a resilient career, lead collegiate teams, win trust in the C-suite, and keep learning through both success and setbacks.

Allan’s career began in Glasgow, where he trained as an accountant at KPMG before transferring to London and finding his way into investment banking.

His first major break came at Schroders, then one of the dominant names in UK merchant banking. It was a traditional, collegiate environment that took real pride in training junior bankers.

From there, Allan moved to DLJ, which could not have been more different.

Where Schroders was classic British merchant banking, DLJ was fast-growing, entrepreneurial, aggressive, and deeply team-oriented. For Allan, it was a defining experience.

If you worked hard and had talent, you were trusted with responsibility. As a VP, he effectively became Head of European Tech because there was a gap and he put his hand up. That early empowerment shaped much of his leadership philosophy today.

One of Allan’s clearest memories from DLJ was the way the firm rewarded success while shutting down internal politics. The culture was intense. People worked hard. But they worked hard together.

That matters, because Allan believes high performance only becomes sustainable when it is matched with trust, fairness, and shared purpose.

At Raymond James, he has carried those lessons forward. His leadership style is built around helping bankers become the best version of themselves. Whether they are analysts, VPs, directors, or senior MDs.

But that starts with understanding that one size does not fit all. Some juniors want to build a long-term banking career. Others want to move into private equity, corporate development, or something entirely different. Allan encourages honesty about those goals.

If someone wants to move to private equity, he would rather know and help them do it well than pretend the conversation isn’t happening.

That creates goodwill, trust, and a long-term alumni network. All of which strengthen the business over time.

One of the more unusual chapters in Allan’s career came when he stepped out of banking to help build a renewable energy business.

Working with former clients and an industrial partner, he helped develop and sell renewable energy assets, eventually becoming non-executive chairman. But he quickly realized he still wanted to be closer to the action.

More importantly, the experience changed how he saw clients. As a banker, it’s easy to focus on getting the deal done. As a principal, Allan learned how deeply personal these decisions can be for founders, CEOs, and shareholders.

Sometimes the issue isn’t just price.

It might be legacy.
It might be protecting the company name.
It might be looking after employees.
It might be how a founder feels about handing over something they built.

That perspective made him a better advisor.

When Allan joined Raymond James in 2020, the firm was still relatively young in Europe. That created a major opportunity.

Raymond James had a strong US parent, a conservative balance sheet, and a willingness to invest. But in Europe, there was still significant white space.

Since then, the firm has expanded through acquisitions, including Financo’s consumer business and Cebile Capital, its private capital advisory platform.

But Allan is clear: Raymond James is not trying to be everything to everyone.

Instead, the firm chooses sectors carefully and aims to be top one, two, or three in each area it covers. That sector depth is central to the strategy.

In today’s market, clients don’t just want generic corporate finance advice. They want bankers who understand their sector, their subsector, their investors, their buyers, and the dynamics shaping their future.

For VPs and future leaders, Allan’s advice on building senior client relationships is particularly valuable.

The first rule: stay true to yourself.

If a CEO loves fine wine and you only drink lager, don’t pretend otherwise. You’ll be found out quickly. Authenticity matters.

The second rule: do something a little different.

That doesn’t mean being a maverick for the sake of it. It might mean walking into a meeting with a one-page agenda instead of a 100-page deck and using that to show real depth of knowledge.

Most importantly, listen.

Great bankers understand what is really keeping a CEO awake at night. For a public company CEO, that might be the next results announcement, the market reaction, or how investors will interpret performance.

If you can become an ally, someone who understands their pressures and helps reduce uncertainty, you create a different kind of relationship.

And then comes the part many people underestimate: follow-up.

Allan believes that if you leave a meeting with ten actions and complete all ten, you immediately put yourself in the top tier of advisors. The discipline of follow-up builds trust.

Allan is passionate about building collegiate environments. There is no single secret formula, but he points to several ingredients:

When a deal involves multiple sectors, strong transatlantic collaboration, or great teamwork, Allan wants that celebrated internally.

It shows people what good looks like.

He also believes culture today has to be different from the old “work hard, play hard” model. The industry has changed. Regulation has increased. Expectations are higher. People want flexibility, training, and connection — not just compensation.

At Raymond James, that includes investments like BankerU, internal training, small office events, open-door conversations, and initiatives that help people connect without forcing everyone into the same mould.

For VPs stepping toward director or MD roles, Allan’s advice is simple: listen to the team and understand people’s talents.

At that level, you are no longer just doing the work. You are helping manage the work. That means identifying who is strong at what, using those strengths effectively, and helping team members teach each other.

If you build a strong team beneath you, you make yourself more successful as you move forward.

A leader’s success is ultimately reflected in the strength of the team they build.

If Allan could go back and advise his younger self, the message would be clear:

Investment banking is a marathon, not a sprint.

A bad year does not define your career.
A failed deal is not the end of the story.
A quiet market can still be used to build relationships, sharpen skills, and stay close to clients.

In fact, those difficult periods often matter most.

When others retreat, the bankers who keep showing up, who keep calling clients, offering perspective, and building trust are remembered when the market returns.

Allan’s career is a reminder that long-term success in investment banking is not built only on transactions. It is built on resilience, integrity, follow-through, and the ability to keep learning through every cycle.

For aspiring leaders, that may be the most important lesson of all.