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PJT Hires BofA's Baladi to Build Up Europe TMT Banking

PJT Hires BofA's Baladi to Build Up Europe TMT Banking

(Bloomberg) -- PJT Partners Inc. has hired Bank of America Corp. dealmaker Antonin Baladi to build up its European technology, media and telecommunications investment banking business, people familiar with the matter said.

The London-based banker is joining PJT in a senior role, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is private. Baladi, who was Bank of America’s head of media and internet investment banking for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, had been with the firm since 2010, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Representatives for Bank of America and New York-based PJT declined to comment.

PJT’s founder Paul J. Taubman has long been one of Wall Street’s top telecom and media dealmakers and has been on a hiring spree since taking his boutique advisory firm public in 2015. He has added several health care-focused partners, poached a top initial public offerings banker from UBS Group AG and last year hired David Perdue from Goldman Sachs Group Inc. to work on private equity deals.

Taubman, 58, told analysts in July the firm feels “very positive” about its European franchise and is expanding its footprint in the region as it wins mandates in more industries and geographies. The number of strategic advisory partners at PJT globally will increase by five in the third quarter, including a partner who will focus on cross-divisional initiatives, Taubman said at the time.

Below the partner level, PJT has hired more than 30 advisory professionals this year, he said. Global companies listed in the U.K. are attracting strategic takeover interest despite a challenging macroeconomic backdrop, and private equity activity is expected to rise in Europe given dislocations in stock prices, according to Taubman.

PJT ranks eighth among advisers on U.S. mergers and acquisitions this year with an 11.1% market share, up from 12th place for all of 2018. In Europe, it ranks 29th this year with a 1.5% market share, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Its largest deal to date in the region was its work with the independent board committee of Sky Plc on the U.K. satellite broadcaster’s takeover by Comcast Corp. last year.

Shares of PJT shares have risen 14% in U.S. trading this year, outpacing rival Moelis & Co. but trailing Evercore Inc.’s 17% gain.

To contact the reporters on this story: Dinesh Nair in London at dnair5@bloomberg.net;Myriam Balezou in London at mbalezou@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Ben Scent at bscent@bloomberg.net, Amy Thomson

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