Bilal Basrai - Steps For A Successful Company Acquisition

Bilal Basrai notes that difficult economic times often results in companies that have managed to weather the storm by looking to acquire those that may have been put in difficult financial strains as a result of the economy. While the process of acquisition is quite complex, these simple steps should offer an idea of what needs to be done for an acquisition to be successful.

Check Your Own Financial State

There is no point considering an acquisition if your own company is not financially stable enough to handle the additional burden. Do you have enough liquidity to carry out the transaction successfully? This needs to be answered at the start of the process.

Create A Full Forecast

Your team needs to be able to see the transaction as it is, rather than having their judgement clouded. You need them to be able to assess the transaction and forecast the potential performance of the acquisition before completing the investment.

Understand Your Goals

Never go into an acquisition without first having an idea of what your goals for the company you wish to purchase are. By knowing what you want to accomplish, you can put a plan in place to get there.

Due Diligence

You will need to conduct a full audit of the business and determine how it is going to fit into your own business model. This step allows you to check that the value you expect from the business is actually present, ensuring the investment is worthwhile and generated a return on investment.

Create a Transition Team

Bilal Basrai notes that you will need to often retrain the company management being acquired in order to have them fit your business philosophies, so it is a good idea to put a transition team in place to help integrate the new company into the fold and ensuring it starts performing as you expect.

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Bilal Basrai - Steps For A Successful Company Acquisition

Bilal Basrai notes that difficult economic times often results in companies that have managed to weather the storm by looking to acquire those that may have been put in difficult financial strains as a result of the economy. While the process of acquisition is quite complex, these simple steps should offer an idea of what needs to be done for an acquisition to be successful.

Check Your Own Financial State

There is no point considering an acquisition if your own company is not financially stable enough to handle the additional burden. Do you have enough liquidity to carry out the transaction successfully? This needs to be answered at the start of the process.

Create A Full Forecast

Your team needs to be able to see the transaction as it is, rather than having their judgement clouded. You need them to be able to assess the transaction and forecast the potential performance of the acquisition before completing the investment.

Understand Your Goals

Never go into an acquisition without first having an idea of what your goals for the company you wish to purchase are. By knowing what you want to accomplish, you can put a plan in place to get there.

Due Diligence

You will need to conduct a full audit of the business and determine how it is going to fit into your own business model. This step allows you to check that the value you expect from the business is actually present, ensuring the investment is worthwhile and generated a return on investment.

Create a Transition Team

Bilal Basrai notes that you will need to often retrain the company management being acquired in order to have them fit your business philosophies, so it is a good idea to put a transition team in place to help integrate the new company into the fold and ensuring it starts performing as you expect.

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Bilal Basrai - Methods For Picking Stocks

There are many methods that you can use in order to pick stocks. Bilal Basrai was ranked as the seventh best stock picker in the health sector by Starmine Monitor and has pointed towards the following methods as being useful for people who have never picked stocks before.

Macro-Analysis

A macro-analysis requires you to be able to see the larger trends in your industry and how they are going to affect each stock that you are thinking about picking. This means you need to take a long term approach to your picking, ensuring that you don’t overpay for stocks when the economy is poor. It is also a good idea to diversify your portfolio when using this method to protect yourself against unexpected outcomes.

 

Fundamental Analysis

This method involves determining what you think a stock is worth to you. This will often not gel with the amount that it is being traded for, with the actual trading price being higher or lower. The simple aspect of this technique is that you simply purchase the stocks that are trading for less than your estimated value, while selling those that are trading for more. However, the value you place on the stock will be subjective and you can’t always guarantee that you will get the returns you want on your picks.

Technical Analysis

Though Bilal Basrai focused primarily on long term investments over short term trading during his time on Wall Street, he still understands the value in the Technical Analysis method. This involves digging into the price movements in the stock market, particularly those related to a potential pick, allowing you to determine short term trends that can be taken advantage of. This is a technique that is best used by traders, rather than investors.

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Bilal Basrai - Methods For Picking Stocks

There are many methods that you can use in order to pick stocks. Bilal Basrai was ranked as the seventh best stock picker in the health sector by Starmine Monitor and has pointed towards the following methods as being useful for people who have never picked stocks before.

Macro-Analysis

A macro-analysis requires you to be able to see the larger trends in your industry and how they are going to affect each stock that you are thinking about picking. This means you need to take a long term approach to your picking, ensuring that you don’t overpay for stocks when the economy is poor. It is also a good idea to diversify your portfolio when using this method to protect yourself against unexpected outcomes.

 

Fundamental Analysis

This method involves determining what you think a stock is worth to you. This will often not gel with the amount that it is being traded for, with the actual trading price being higher or lower. The simple aspect of this technique is that you simply purchase the stocks that are trading for less than your estimated value, while selling those that are trading for more. However, the value you place on the stock will be subjective and you can’t always guarantee that you will get the returns you want on your picks.

Technical Analysis

Though Bilal Basrai focused primarily on long term investments over short term trading during his time on Wall Street, he still understands the value in the Technical Analysis method. This involves digging into the price movements in the stock market, particularly those related to a potential pick, allowing you to determine short term trends that can be taken advantage of. This is a technique that is best used by traders, rather than investors.

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Bilal Basrai - Things To Keep In Mind During an Investment Banking Interview

Having worked as an investment banker and corporate financial analyst for such prestigious financial institutions as Lehman Brothers and UBS Financial, Bilal Basrai has faced more than one investment banking job interview. It’s a high pressure situation, but you may be able to alleviate some of that pressure by keeping the following in mind.

Know The Role

If you walk into a job interview without having any idea about what the role actually entails, you are simply going to offend the interviewer and give them a reason to cross you off their list before you even sit down to talk. Do your research, demonstrate that you understand what will be required of you and discuss what you can bring to the specific role, in addition to the company in general.

Be Ready For The Technical Test

Most interviews for a job in investment banking are going to make use of a technical test that will examine your proficiency when it comes to numbers and various other aspects of the job. Make sure that you review anything that you think might be relevant before you interview for a role, rather than assuming that your degree prepared you sufficiently.

Look Good

First impressions count in the business world for so many different reasons, so Bilal Basrai recommends looking the part as soon as you walk through the door. Have a good suit on and ensure that you are well-groomed. Watch your body language and don’t do things that betray nervousness, such as covering your mouth with your hand when you speak. If you make a good first impression, you will increase your chances of getting the chance to follow up and show what really makes you special.

Bilal Basrai - Things To Keep In Mind During an Investment Banking Interview

Having worked as an investment banker and corporate financial analyst for such prestigious financial institutions as Lehman Brothers and UBS Financial, Bilal Basrai has faced more than one investment banking job interview. It’s a high pressure situation, but you may be able to alleviate some of that pressure by keeping the following in mind.

Know The Role

If you walk into a job interview without having any idea about what the role actually entails, you are simply going to offend the interviewer and give them a reason to cross you off their list before you even sit down to talk. Do your research, demonstrate that you understand what will be required of you and discuss what you can bring to the specific role, in addition to the company in general.

Be Ready For The Technical Test

Most interviews for a job in investment banking are going to make use of a technical test that will examine your proficiency when it comes to numbers and various other aspects of the job. Make sure that you review anything that you think might be relevant before you interview for a role, rather than assuming that your degree prepared you sufficiently.

Look Good

First impressions count in the business world for so many different reasons, so Bilal Basrai recommends looking the part as soon as you walk through the door. Have a good suit on and ensure that you are well-groomed. Watch your body language and don’t do things that betray nervousness, such as covering your mouth with your hand when you speak. If you make a good first impression, you will increase your chances of getting the chance to follow up and show what really makes you special.

Bilal Basrai - Surviving Your First Year on Wall Street

Despite the fact that he studied dual majors in Finance and Economics during his time in college, nothing could quite prepare Bilal Basrai for that first year on Wall Street. He knows that a lot of young analysts will be intimidated when they first start working on the street, no matter how much prior learning and networking they have done. The following tips should help them to survive and create a solid foundation on which to build a successful career.

Don’t Be A Big Burden

During your first months on Wall Street you will be spending most of your time learning the ropes, which automatically makes you a burden on your associates. That is to be expected, but you need to make an effort to minimize this burden in any way that you can. Whenever you have a question, make sure to try to figure out a solution for yourself before asking about it. If you solve the problem, you will also demonstrate that you have initiative, which is an added bonus.

Don’t Only Talk About The Markets

New analysts will often make the mistake of focusing entirely on the markets when they are networking, but it is important to build personal relationships with the people in your network too. They want to work with people they can trust and relate to, so make an effort to be that person.

Approach Menial Tasks With The Right Attitude

Bilal Basrai notes that a lot of first year analysts and investors will be asked to do tasks that they may not find particularly interesting. However, you need to show that you are willing to work hard no matter what the job, so be sure to approach the task with enthusiasm and get tit completed efficiently. Eventually, you’ll start to be trusted with more interesting work.