Investment bankers are known for high-stakes deals and lavish rewards, but one of the most coveted perks in the industry is far from glamorous. Deal toys—customized desktop trinkets that commemorate the closure of a transaction—have become a prized tradition among analysts and executives alike. The global market for these mementos has grown into a $60 million industry, according to manufacturers, fueled by a surge in mergers, acquisitions, and initial public offerings.
The practice dates back to the era of newspaper tombstone ads, which banks were required by the Securities and Exchange Commission to publish for major deals. These brief advertisements, listing underwriters and transaction details, ran in publications like The Wall Street Journal and the Financial Times. In the 1970s, bankers began embedding these ads in lucite blocks to create a more permanent keepsake, says Erik Steudler, founder and CEO of Milestone Awards, a deal toy manufacturer with offices in New York, Nashville, Hong Kong, and London. The tombstone eventually moved from the page to the desk, and a cottage industry was born.
Today, deal toys come in a dizzying array of shapes and sizes. Some are simple glass prisms etched with a company name and bank logo. Others feature 3D-printed elements, floating features, and specialized lighting. Silhouettes may take the form of the Bitcoin logo, a game console, or even a Japanese temple. Manufacturers like HV Recognition, which has offices in Europe, Asia, and the U.S., employ in-house design teams to create bespoke pieces, often made in China. Gregory Thomas, sales director at HV Recognition, has overseen projects ranging from a basketball enclosed in an acrylic box to a Nike Air Jordan sneaker the size of a loaf of bread. «If you’d have asked me 10 years ago the stuff that I was doing today, I’d would’ve said you’ve lost your mind,» Thomas says.
The tradition briefly declined after the 2008 collapse of Lehman Brothers, which triggered stricter regulation on bank spending. But the industry has rebounded strongly, with financial institutions leading more lucrative transactions than ever. The tech boom and consolidation trend are also driving demand. High-profile deals like the Paramount-Warner Brothers merger and forthcoming billion-dollar IPOs from AI companies such as OpenAI are expected to keep the market growing. As deal sizes increase, so does the deal toy market.
For young analysts, these trinkets serve as a sort of participation trophy—a physical signifier of success in a fiercely competitive field. Alex R., a full-time investment banker in New York, recalls noticing the knickknacks crowding desks during his first internship. «I asked them, ‘What are these things?’» he says. The answer revealed a deeply ingrained tradition that outsiders rarely encounter. When two investment bankers in their mid-twenties overheard a conversation about deal toys, they were stunned that «normies» knew about their custom. «I forget people don’t know these exist,» one remarked.
Design preferences vary by region. European clients often favor subdued, minimalist designs, while American analysts tend to embrace a «bigger the better» approach, according to Thomas. The rise of 3D printing and other emerging technologies has made increasingly ambitious designs feasible and durable. «I find with every year that passes, there’s more and more that becomes feasible and durable,» Thomas says. The current landscape is dominated by alumni of the original deal toy manufacturers who have branched out on their own, employing dozens of designers and salespeople.
Despite the industry’s intense public image—fueled by portrayals in shows like Industry and films like The Wolf of Wall Street—the appeal of a $100 desktop trinket endures. For many bankers, the deal toy is more than a memento; it is a tangible marker of their role in a completed transaction, a small trophy in a world of million-dollar deals. As mergers and IPOs continue to proliferate, the demand for these quirky commemoratives shows no sign of slowing.