Some Bankers Still Earning Their Keep

Pfizer's $68 billion deal to buy Wyeth is a welcome sign that megadeals can still get done in this environment if you can find enough banks to loan you money. Pfizer is borrowing $22.5 billion from a consortium of five banks to help finance the deal.

But for some on Wall Street, this deal is more than that. It's an oasis in the middle of a desert that seemingly never ends. Advisers on the deal will share a $207 million kitty once it closes, which represents a much-needed flood of fees into the coffers of struggling M&A advisory units.

Bloomberg estimates that Morgan Stanley and the boutique firm Evercore Partners, which advised Wyeth, will split $125 million in fees. That adds up to more revenue than Evercore collected on advisory work in the past six months, and it's nearly a quarter of what Morgan Stanley took in during the fourth quarter.

The deal is less lucrative on the Pfizer end, but its recipients are no less hard up for the cash. Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Barclays, and Citigroup will split $82 million on the deal, but they'll also bring in revenue from the $22.5 billion loan.

On the legal side, Wyeth used Simpson Thacher & Bartlett while Pfizer enlisted the services of Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft.

At least a few of the bankers left on Wall Street got a reminder of how it feels to work around the clock over a weekend. Too bad their bonuses still probably won't reward it.

by Megan Barnett