I can name 5 large funds and 3 institutions that do not pay interns. In fact, one-- the intern pays for the opportunity.
surf
Yeah...me too. Yet, we're in different countries
There are different types of internships associated with student placements into an institutional firm and it really depends on the job placement, credits and work placements association.
1) Some are
paid...most likely those requiring long hours and relocation. Also, these institutional firms will often give financial bonus at the discretion of the firm if the intern did something exceptional (e.g. BNP London).
2) Some are
unpaid...these students are exploited...often many complaints about such. For example, an intern regularly spends the morning getting coffee/tea/oil fried bread sticks and picking up clothing from the dry cleaners for traders and then only sat in a meeting for 15 minutes with the fixed income traders (e.g. Credit Suisse Hong Kong).
Here in Canada they have ESA rules (something like 5 - 6 explanations for such) for an institutional firm or any other job to consider the intern as an unpaid or paid position. For example, if you're an intern and the firm derives little or no benefit from your position as an intern while you're being trained...its going to be an
unpaid internship (e.g. top firm in Montreal...won't name it because I have a relative that works there). Yeah, not nice but the firm tells you upfront and the University associated with the firm understands clearly if you should be paid or unpaid...University makes their decision based upon if the intern training simulates or not the classroom learning environment.
Summary of London, Hong Kong and Canada...it really depends on the University curriculum, intern job duties, type of training, if your internship takes away someone's (potential) job opportunity, benefits to the firm, job opportunity promises and so on that determines if its a paid or unpaid internship.
Choose wisely unless you're ok with doing coffee errands. 