Mizuho's head of credit trading had a long absence and then suddenly disappeared

If you're looking for Aristo Vounakis at Mizuho in London, you will not find him there. He is not there. He has gone. But he wasn't around for a while anyway.

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Sources say that Vounakis was let go by Mizuho this week. Mizuho confirmed his exit but declined to elaborate upon the circumstances. Vounakis himself didn't respond to a request to comment on his disappearance.

Vounakis was Mizuho's head of credit trading in Europe. He joined the Japanese bank as head of corporate credit trading in 2019 after time at RBS and Lloyds, and was promoted to head of flow credit trading in 2022.

Multiple sources say that Vounakis was off sick for eight months before he returned to the desk and was asked to leave. 

Go on sick leave and then disappearing is not unheard of on Mizuho's credit desk. Claus Jorgensen, a former head of credit trading at the bank, did the same four years ago.

It's not clear what Vounakis plans to do next. It's thought that he has a nice house in Crete but lives in London. It's also thought that he was one of the biggest producers on the Mizuho credit desk, alongside Hardeep Bariana who was promoted as his co-head in 2024. Bariana remains at the bank.

Vounakis is the latest exit from Mizuho's credit desk. Other departures include Davide Ceruti and Bader Barghoti, who've gone to SMBC.

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