Lazard hires Guggenheim banker Haydon for private equity dealmaking, source says

By David French

(Reuters) - Investment bank Lazard has hired Courtney Haydon from Guggenheim Securities as a managing director to help drive dealmaking involving private equity firms and alternative asset managers, a person familiar with the matter said on Thursday.

Haydon will join Lazard's financial sponsors coverage group in the coming months, the source said, requesting anonymity as the matter is confidential.

The latest hire is part of a broader recruiting push from Lazard in its efforts to win more business from buyout firms. This year, Lazard has hired nine investment bankers at the managing director level, including Adam Cady from Bank of America to run large-cap financial sponsor coverage in North America, and former Citigroup dealmaker Ali Syed to cover sovereign wealth funds and pension funds.

Haydon held a similar role at Guggenheim as a senior managing director for financial sponsor investment banking. Prior to Guggenheim, Haydon worked at SL Green Realty and Bank of America, according to her LinkedIn profile.

Lazard declined to comment. Guggenheim did not respond to a request for comment.

Deal activity involving financial sponsors has rebounded this year as buyout firms have deployed more capital, after a spike in financing costs last year triggered a slowdown in dealmaking. Global leveraged buyout volumes jumped 41% to $286 billion during the first half of 2024, according to data from Dealogic.

On an earnings call last month, Lazard CEO Peter Orszag said private equity-led M&A activity is expected to continue increasing as interest rates come down.

(Reporting by David French in New York; editing by Jonathan Oatis)

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