Citi Hires Lehman Vet as M&A Chief

NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. bank Citigroup Inc (C.N) said on Thursday that it hired Lehman Brothers’ (LEH.N) Mark Shafir to become global head of M&A, filling a spot open since June when Frank Yeary retired.

Shafir was chairman and co-head of M&A at Lehman alongside Paul Parker, who now steps into the top M&A post at Lehman.

Parker’s division is expected to become part of British bank Barclays Plc (BARC.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), which agreed on Wednesday to buy some of stricken Lehman’s prime U.S. assets following its bankruptcy filing. Barclays Capital, the investment banking unit of Barclays, does not currently have an M&A division.

“Paul … has been one of the architects of our M&A business and will play a central role in continuing the development of the franchise as we anticipate the combination of our Investment Banking operations with Barclays Capital in the coming months,” Skip McGee, global head of Lehman Brothers’ Investment Banking Division, said in a statement.

Parker will continue to report to McGee, Lehman said in a press release.

At Citi, Shafir will report to Raymond McGuire and Alberto Verme, co-heads of Investment Banking.

Shafir fills the role vacated in June when Yeary retired from the firm to become a vice chancellor at the University of California, Berkeley.

A source said Shafir had agreed to move several weeks prior to Lehman filing for bankruptcy, but stayed at the bank until its situation was resolved.

By Megan Davies
(Editing by Gary Hill)