NEW YORK, Sept. 26, 2014 /PRNewswire/ — Guggenheim Securities, the investment banking and capital markets division of Guggenheim Partners, today announced the execution of a definitive purchase agreement to acquire the London operations of Lazard Capital Markets (LCM), expanding the firm’s international presence. Consummation of the transaction is subject to approval by the Financial Conduct Authority.

The acquisition, upon approval, would allow Guggenheim to conduct a range of sales and trading operations, with an initial focus on European corporate and sovereign debt and U.S. and foreign equities.

Guggenheim plans to operate the business under the new name of Guggenheim Securities International Ltd.

“We are excited to have the opportunity to extend Guggenheim’s products and services to clients in Europe,” said Alan Schwartz, Executive Chairman of Guggenheim Partners and CEO of Guggenheim Securities. “At a time when many European clients are looking to restructure and find funding in the capital markets, we believe that the client-focus partnership model that has served us so well in building our business in the United States will allow us to extend our growth throughout Europe, and this is an important step toward that.”

As part of the acquisition, Guggenheim is welcoming LCM’s team of 10 professionals, led by Duncan Riefler, who ran the LCM London office. He will report to Ronald Iervolino, Senior Managing Director and Head of Fixed Income, based in New York.

“My colleagues and I are looking forward to joining the Guggenheim team and providing the same world-class client service in Europe that has long been the firm’s hallmark in the rest of the world,” Mr. Riefler said.

Joining Mr. Riefler from LCM are David Corney, Phillip Bloch, Jay Larkin, Nannette Bax-Stevens, Piero Greco, Samir Patel and Alison Kilsby. In addition, Dennis McKenna and Tomas Mannion will also be joining the platform in high-yield trading and research roles, respectively, marking the start of the growth commitment from Guggenheim.

Before joining LCM, Mr. Riefler was a co-founder and partner of Sonas Partners in London, an independent brokerage focused on trading fixed-income securities. Prior to that, he had a 19-year career at Merrill Lynch with a number of roles within fixed income in New York and London. He holds a BA from Denison University.

About Guggenheim Partners

Guggenheim Partners is a global investment and advisory firm with more than $210 billion in assets under management. Across our three primary businesses of investment management, investment banking, and insurance services, we have a track record of delivering results through innovative solutions. With more than 2,500 professionals based in more than 25 offices around the world, our commitment is to advance the strategic interests of our clients and to deliver long-term results with excellence and integrity. We invite you to learn more about our expertise and values by visiting GuggenheimPartners.com and following us on Twitter at twitter.com/guggenheimptnrs.

SOURCE Guggenheim Partners