Sanford C. Bernstein's senior U.S. banking analyst, Ron Mandle, had toyed with the idea of a switch to the buy side for some time, but it took a foreign government to get him to pull the trigger. Last fall one of Mandle's clients -- Government of Singapore Investment Corp. -- called about an opening on their staff. "There were three things that I wanted," says the 58-year-old Wall Street veteran. "Something global, access to Wall Street and access to the companies I cover. GIC offered all of that."