Job Wrap: Promising signs for M&A hiring
Aside from forecasts that bonuses will be bigger than ever, there was some good (limited) good news for M&A bankers last week. Standard Chartered, the UK-listed bank, divulged plans to double its London-based mergers and acquisitions advisory team. A spokesman said the bank was looking add a further five to seven bankers in the coming months to its five-strong team. Whether Standard Chartered will be paying US investment banking-style bonuses is another question.
It emerged that Pierre Danon, recently ousted as chief operating officer at French IT consultancy Cap Gemini, is joining JP Morgan as a senior adviser. JP Morgan said Danon will advise clients in the telecommunications, media and technology sectors. He will join the JP Morgan European Advisory Council, a group of senior bankers.
Gerardo Braggiotti, former head of Lazard Italia who started his own advisory boutique in September, got close to acquiring Italian merchant bank Banca Leonardo. Reports in the Italian media suggested Braggiotti would become chief executive of the bank and Piero Barucci, the existing chairman, would become president.
Technology: in one door and out the other
Barclays Capital hired Philip Freeborn from UBS as its chief information officer (CIO). Freeborn will be responsible for the bank's technology globally.
Meanwhile, Deloitte & Touche, the UK arm of the audit, tax and consulting services group Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu, hired Kevin O'Reilly, the former head of information technology and strategy at Barclays Capital. O'Reilly, who left last summer, will head Deloitte's financial services strategy practice.
Hedge funds and prime brokerage: Citigroup hires Barr
Citigroup hired Dean Barr, a former global chief investment offer of Deutsche Asset Management, to work in its alternative assets division. Barr will be a managing director and head of liquid investments. Citigroup's alternative assets division manages $41.6bn (€35.2bn) in hedge funds, private equity and real estate.
Bear Stearns hired Charles Atkinson from French brokerage Exane BNP Paribas as a managing director in hedge fund services. Atkinson will focus particularly on global equities and will offer products to hedge funds that are both prime brokerage and stockbroking clients. He is the third addition made by Bear Stearns to its European prime brokerage service in recent months.
Two senior executives left Coronation Fund Managers, a $1.2bn (€1bn) fund of hedge funds manager. Arne Hassel chief investment officer and Ramona Glass, head of product management and client services, resigned. The departures follow three other senior exits in the past year.
Private equity: Deakin promoted
Phoenix Equity Partners, a middle-market private equity group, promoted Andrew Deakin, an investment manager with responsibility for the leisure sector, to partner.
Asset management: Turbulence at BGI
Barclays Global Investors (BGI), the investment arm of the UK's Barclays Bank, unveiled a management shake-up sparked by the decision of Matthew Annable, BGI's European chief investment officer, to step down for lifestyle reasons. Annable's departure follows the recent exit of John Demaine, global head of hedge funds, Chris Thomason, European managing director in charge of indexed products, Andrew Skirton, former co-chief executive, and Stuart Owen, head of active strategies. Owen is taking a career break following a skiing accident.
Following the wave of departures, BGI created five new senior roles and appointed a new European head of human resources. Malcolm Leigh joins to head global market strategies in London, from macro and currency manager Tactical Global Management, where he was chief executive. Nico Marais, an active equity investment strategist at BGI in San Francisco, becomes head of investment strategy for the UK and European active equity group in London. Mark Stockley from JP Morgan has been appointed head of cash sales. And Mike Walsh joined as European chief financial officer for finance and corporate services, from Deutsche Asset Management.
BGI also hired Neil Purvis from Credit Suisse First Boston to be head of human resources for Europe.
Separately, Aegon Asset Management, part of Netherlands insurer Aegon, gave chief investment officer Andrew Fleming the additional role of managing director following the departure of former managing director Colin McLatchie.
Peter Stormonth Darling, the former chairman of Mercury Asset Management, now Merrill Lynch Investment Managers, joined the board of Advent Capital Holdings as a non-executive director.
Musical chairs at BNP Paribas
BNP Paribas announced a changing of the guard. The French bank said Jacques d'Estais its fixed-income chief, will succeed Philippe Blavier, who is retiring, as head of corporate and investment banking. Frederic Janbon will replace d'Estais as head of fixed income.
Bernard Allorent, who is global head of risks is also set to retire shortly. He will be replaced by Michel Konczaty, former head of structured finance. Eric Raynaud will succeed Konczaty as head of BNP Paribas' structured finance business, and will take charge of portfolio management for corporate and investment banking clients.
