At Bulge Bracket banks, such as Citigroup, Deutsche Bank, JPMorgan Chase, and Lehman Brothers, the name of the game was size.

在像是花旗集團、德意志銀行、摩根大通，與雷曼兄弟等的大型投資機構銀行，規模才是重點。

Armed with a big balance sheet, the top advisory bankers in London and New York hunted deals with their boardroom relationships, while also having the ability to offer their clients financing packages.

在倫敦與紐約的頂尖諮詢銀行擁有流動性大的資產負債表，其找尋合夥關係，同時也提供客戶融資方案。

But this all changed after the financial crisis.

但金融危機後，一切都變了。

Post-crisis regulations that were designed to prevent risky trading and lending made life a lot more bureaucratic and a lot less fun.

危機後的規範用於預防有風險之貿易與借貸行為，讓一切更官僚化又乏味。

Pay packages and perks were also more tightly controlled.

總體福利和津貼也被嚴格控管。

That is when the exodus began.

這就是許多「出走自立」的開始。

Bankers who would spend a lifetime at places like Morgan Stanley, UBS, and Goldman Sachs, quick to start their own boutique firms.

在摩根士丹利、瑞銀集團，以及高盛集團傾注一生心血的銀行家，迅速成立自己的精品 (諮詢) 公司。

This new generation of boutique banks is nostalgic for the old ways of banking - small partnerships, where a select group of senior bankers mostly own and operate the firm.

如今，精品諮詢公司讓人想起過去的銀行模式，也就是大部分由公司裡資深的銀行家掌權與營運的小規模合作關係。

Critics of the big banks say this is a superior model.

評論家認為這是典範。

Risk-taking is likely to be more prudent when partners have more skin in the game.

當對方的籌碼更多時，涉險前需要更謹慎。

Free from the shackles of the big banks, where even your every email is monitored by compliance, those succeeding in boutiques say they're having more fun.

不用再被大銀行所牽制，也不用配合郵件被監控，這些躍身精品投行的人樂在其中。

And they're once again making tens of millions of dollars.

再一次提到，他們都因此賺進大筆鈔票。

At the turn of the century, the top five mega banks made about 50% of M&A fees, while boutiques accounted for 15%.

本世紀的轉捩點，就是前五大的銀行賺進約 50% 的合併與收購利益，而精品投行占了 15%。

Today, they control anywhere from 30% to 35% of M&A fees.

現在精品投行佔了 30 到 35% 的合併與收購利益。

The likes of Goldman, JPMorgan, and Morgan Stanley have survived the rise of the boutiques.

因受好評，高盛、摩根大通和摩根士丹利從精品投行的崛起中存活下來。

But for many other famed names in the world of banking, such as the European houses, the M&A game has become more difficult as the boutiques have risen.

但其他像是歐洲本土的知名銀行，在精品投行的影響下，合併與收購變得更加困難了。