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Ducera Partners

Boutique investment bank advising M&A

Associate – Investment Banking

Full-TimeUpdated on 10/23/2026
$200k - $250k/yr
Mid
Los Angeles, CA, USA
In PersonRole is based in the Los Angeles office.
Finance & BankingInvestment Banking

About the job

Requirements
  • Experience in investment banking with a strong technical and corporate finance foundation.
  • Strong organizational and process-management skills, including the ability to use technology and data tools to build and maintain databases, investor and lender relationships, market comparables, and transaction pipeline tracking.
  • Demonstrated proficiency in preparing client presentations and analyzing company and transaction comparables.
  • Ability to interface directly with clients, investors, and senior deal bankers.
  • Completion of a Suited profile is mandatory as part of the candidate evaluation and recruitment process.
Responsibilities
  • Work closely with senior bankers and clients in a lean team setting, demonstrating initiative, ownership, judgment, and professionalism while managing multiple priorities and deadlines.
  • Coordinate complex, time-sensitive workstreams across internal teams and external parties, including clients, legal advisors, and other transaction participants.
  • Actively participate in transaction execution by developing and reviewing financial analyses and models, transaction structures, financing alternatives, implementation paths, and scenario analyses, and by supporting senior bankers in client-facing interactions, commercial activities, and deal execution.
  • Prepare, review, and present client materials, including pitch books, strategic advisory presentations, transaction presentations, and recommendations; review capital markets, ratings, and credit perspectives to support discussions with clients and other stakeholders.
  • Develop and present perspectives informed by substantial content review, including third-party perspectives and recommendations, legislative and regulatory documents, credit and equity research, market reference points, and internal experience.
  • Monitor, track, interpret, and inform the team about market and industry activity, including comparable transactions, fundamental credit and cost-of-capital implications, alternative execution approaches, investor lists, and developments that inform strategies, future activity, and client recommendations.
  • Maintain internal transaction and pipeline tracking tools, ensuring accuracy and organization in a fast-paced, multi-mandate environment; track news and legislative and regulatory activity and monitor potential opportunities.
  • Over time, take an active role in covering clients and developing business development efforts.
  • Manage day-to-day transaction execution workstreams, including senior banker and client requests, and deliver analysis on time with strong attention to detail.
  • Provide mentorship, training, and guidance to junior team members.

About the company

Ducera Partners is a boutique investment banking firm that provides strategic advisory services for high-stakes financial deals, including mergers and acquisitions, restructuring, and capital raising for corporations, private equity firms, and other financial institutions. It earns fees for its advisory work, which can be a flat amount, a percentage of the deal value, or a mix of both. The firm differentiates itself through a stable, long-tenured senior team, strong emphasis on talent development, and a technology-driven recruitment platform called Suited that assesses work preferences, values, personality, stress response, and cognitive ability to hire well-aligned professionals. Its goal is to help clients achieve the best outcomes in complex financial transactions while building lasting relationships and a values-driven firm culture.

Company Size

11-50

Company Stage

N/A

Total Funding

N/A

Headquarters

New York City, New York

Founded

2015

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Simplify's Take

What believers are saying

  • LIV Golf retained Ducera in May 2026 for long-term capital strategy.
  • Philip Youn brought Bank of America M&A scale and technology-enabled services expertise.
  • Corteva Catalyst collaboration extends Ducera Growth into corporate venture and strategic partnership sourcing.

What critics are saying

  • Perella Weinberg’s decade-long lawsuit over Ducera’s formation drags through 2026.
  • LIV Golf needs new financing after PIF ends support in 2026.
  • Reliance on founder-driven senior rainmakers creates existential key-person risk if Kramer departs.

What makes Ducera Partners unique

  • Michael Kramer founded Ducera in 2015 after Perella Weinberg’s restructuring split.
  • July 2026 hires Philip Youn, Andrew Vogt, John Vaske deepen M&A bench.
  • Ducera spans M&A, restructuring, liability management, and growth capital across New York, Los Angeles.

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Benefits

  • Mentorship by Industry Veterans
  • Highly Collaborative Environment
  • Grow by Doing Challenging Work

Company News

The Mirror Democrat and Savanna Times-Journal
Jul 6th, 2026
Philip Youn joins Ducera Partners as a Managing Director in the firm's mergers and acquisitions group.

Philip Youn joins Ducera Partners as a Managing Director in the firm's mergers and acquisitions group. * 2 hrs ago Ducera Partners LLC ("Ducera") a leading investment bank, today announced that Philip Youn has joined the firm as a Managing Director. He will be based in the firm's New York office and will focus on advising clients on an array of mergers and acquisitions ("M&A") mandates. Mr. Youn joins Ducera from Bank of America, where he was a senior banker in the M&A group and led the firm's technology-enabled services M&A practice. Over the past 15 years, Mr. Youn has advised public and private clients across a broad range of strategic alternatives, including more than 75 completed transactions representing over $125 billion in aggregate transaction value. Prior to Bank of America, Mr. Youn held investment banking roles at Morgan Stanley and Lazard, as well as a senior investment role in private equity. He began his career in strategy consulting. Chris Grubb, Head of M&A and Partner at Ducera Partners, said, "Developing a best-in-class M&A platform to ensure we are well positioned to thoughtfully advise our clients and help them achieve their business objectives has been a key priority for our firm over the past several years. We remain focused on expanding the depth and breadth of our talent and capabilities in support of our clients' needs. Philip's experience coupled with his proven track record makes him an ideal fit to join our team. We are looking forward to his contributions." Mr. Youn added, "Ducera has risen to become a significant player in M&A advisory, and the firm continues to strategically scale its platform in support of delivering optimal outcomes on behalf of clients. I look forward to leveraging my experience and expertise to help the firm cultivate client relationships and serve as a strategic adviser on a broad array of M&A mandates." Mr. Youn earned a BA from Cornell University and an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. About Ducera Partners LLC Ducera Partners is a leading investment bank with expertise in mergers & acquisitions, strategic advisory, restructuring, liability management, capital markets, and growth capital. Since its founding in June 2015, Ducera Partners has advised on over $950 billion in transactions across various industries. Ducera Partners has offices in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Stamford. For more information about Ducera Partners, please visit www.ducerapartners.com. Media gallery

Channel NewsAsia
May 4th, 2026
LIV Golf hires investment bank to advise on new multi-partner model.

LIV Golf hires investment bank to advise on new multi-partner model. 05 May 2026 12:54AM Add CNA as a trusted source to help Google better understand and surface our content in search results. With LIV Golf in search of new funding partnerships, the league announced that New York-based Ducera Partners LLC will serve as an investment banking advisor as it seeks financial stability moving forward. Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund already has announced it will end financial support of LIV Golf at the end of the 2026 season. Last month, LIV announced a new board to be headed by Eugene Davis, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of PIRINATE Consulting Group LLC and Jon Zinman, the founder and managing member of JZ Advisors LLC. They are tasked primarily with "institutionalizing the league, formalizing its ownership structure, and evaluating the range of strategic opportunities," according to the league. "This league has proven its value, and our focus now is on building the right financial foundation for the long term," LIV CEO Scott O'Neil said..."... Ducera (brings) deep transaction experience and a track record of delivering in complex, high-stakes situations. They are the right partner for this process." Founded in 2021, LIV Golf made its debut in June 2022 and used lavish, guaranteed contracts to lure dozens of stars like Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson, Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau away from the PGA. Former LIV participant Brooks Koepka already has returned to the PGA Tour while Patrick Reed will return later this season. PIF has provided LIV with more than $5 billion, but the league has reportedly lost millions of dollars per year. Earlier this month, Yasir Al-Rumayyan, PIF's governor and LIV's main financial backer, shared a plan for the kingdom to cut back on international investments and focus on more domestic projects. LIV notes that Ducera "is a leading investment bank specializing in complex, high-stakes corporate finance." The investment giant is noted to have "$850 billion in transactions" through media, entertainment and sports ventures. In touting "significant momentum," LIV said that sponsors and partnerships have increased 40 per cent per year, ticket sales have grown 130 per cent and that tournament broadcasts have reached one million households worldwide. -Field Level Media

Ducera Partners LLC
Mar 19th, 2025
Andrew Vogt Joins Ducera Partners as a Managing Director in the firm's Mergers and Acquisitions Group

NEW YORK, March 19, 2025 - Ducera Partners LLC ("Ducera"), a leading investment bank, today announced that Andrew Vogt has joined the firm as a Managing Director.

BNN Bloomberg
Sep 9th, 2024
Ducera Taps Temasek, Goldman Alum Vaske as Partner, M&A Co-Head

(Bloomberg) - Ducera Partners hired John Vaske, Temasek Holdings Pte's former head of Americas and a former Goldman Sachs Group Inc. partner, as vice chairman, partner and co-head of mergers and acquisitions.

Citybiz
May 20th, 2024
Emily Katz-Turner Joins Ducera Partners as a Managing Director

Emily Katz-Turner joins Ducera Partners as a Managing Director.