Jefferies LLC Enhances Its Operational Efficiency and Data Accessibility by Adopting Visible Alpha

Introduction
Investment bankers can face significant operational challenges due to limitations in the information provided by research reports and analyst models. The process of extracting estimates from the sell-side can be manual and cumbersome, restricting access to detailed segment-level data.

At Jefferies, prior to adopting Visible Alpha, bankers typically downloaded 10 to 20 research reports and manually searched for specific line items for each deal and earnings cycle. This labor-intensive approach consumed valuable time and the embargoed access to research reports—typically 1 to 2 weeks—delayed their ability to obtain the latest updates from sell-side equity research, leaving them at a data disadvantage.

Pain Points
Bankers were spending excessive time gathering data, placing them at risk of missed opportunities and losing deals to other banks who had access to more granular, timely data.

• The opportunity cost of time was significant, especially during high-pressure deal cycles.
• Team members were working longer days due to the time needed to gather data.

Additional issues included the challenges posed by embargoed access to research reports.

“The data our bankers needed to make good decisions was often arduous to locate and verify,” said David Fink, an analyst with Jefferies Financial Institutions Group. “It was also frequently a manual process to gather both historic and current KPI data, which raised the odds of errors. In some cases, you would need to dig up several equity research reports to create consensus estimates or see how specific estimates have been revised over time. This was especially the case for less standard company lineups who have unique data points that were critical to our analyses.” – David Fink, Investment Banking Analyst, Jefferies

The Solution
Jefferies adopted Visible Alpha Insights, which provided several key features and benefits:

• Access to granular consensus data derived from the raw working models of over 220 contributing brokers.
• Non-embargoed access to consensus updates, allowing bankers to receive the most current consensus within six hours of a model update.

The implementation of Visible Alpha took approximately 1 to 2 months, during which all groups were trained on the platform. Ongoing training was provided on an individual basis to ensure comprehensive understanding and utilization.

To ensure a smooth onboarding experience, we collaborated closely with Jefferies' IT team to facilitate the integration of an Excel add-in into the internal App Store. This led to streamlined data digestion and analysis.

“Visible Alpha put the granular data I needed at my fingertips. It was transparent and traceable to the original source, and I could easily view historic and consensus estimates on a comparable basis across companies. This tool also eliminated the errors inherent in manual data recovery, and I could instantly refresh data with the Excel plug-in. Overall, Visible Alpha removed much of the grunt work and gave me and my colleagues more time to focus on the thoughtful parts of our analysis.” - David Fink, Investment Banking Analyst, Jefferies

Key Benefits
Since gaining access to Visible Alpha, Jefferies has been able to make meaningful improvements to their investment banking operations. The platform has streamlined the process of collecting sell-side estimates, significantly enhancing the granularity of data available to bankers. This efficiency has allowed bankers to reclaim time in their day and equipped them with more comprehensive information for company analysis.

The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, reinforcing the value of Visible Alpha as an essential tool for investment banking professionals.

The integration of Visible Alpha has not only improved operational workflows at Jefferies LLC but has also positioned the bank to compete more effectively in a fast-paced industry where data accessibility is paramount.