Boutique investment bank William Blair has doubled dealmaker numbers in Europe over the past two years, and will continue to build its business in the region even as larger competitors cut back, its top City banker said.
The bank has around 150 dealmakers in Europe, having recently pushed into the continent through new operations in Spain and Switzerland, Anu Sharma, head of investment banking in the region, told Financial News.
“Over the past three years, we’ve now doubled our team size in Europe, we’ve more than tripled our European client base and we’ve gone from two investment banking locations to five on the ground,” he said.
Alongside its new European offices, William Blair has tapped rivals for senior hires in Europe in recent months. In February, Kiara Mitchinson joined from Australian boutique Barrenjoey, following on from five senior recruits across its European investment bank in July last year.
In Spain, Álvaro Hernández, its head of Iberia coverage within its financial sponsors group, was promoted to lead the new office in the Spanish capital.
READ William Blair pushes into Europe with new Madrid office, Zurich dealmakers
Sharma said that William Blair will be “prioritising language capabilities” in Iberia, without necessarily adding more boots on the ground in Spain.
“Even with Brexit, there’s a lot of great talent from Spain and Portugal who would like to work in London, so given that we’re so integrated, that is what we’ve been prioritising,” he said. “Over time, do I see us having a bigger presence in that market? Absolutely.”
Sharma said that William Blair takes a “longer-term orientation” to building its business, compared with its larger, often publicly-listed peers, which have cut back on employees as dealmaking activity has slumped.
The bank has not been entirely immune to these pressures, however, cutting around 100 bankers globally in April as the outlook for dealmaking activity has declined in recent months. But Sharma said that William Blair is aiming to end the year with the same number of employees it started with, primarily through new analyst hires.
Investment banking fees in Europe have fallen by 32% so far this year, according to data provider Dealogic, as both M&A and equity capital markets activity has remained muted. This follows a 33% decline over the course of 2022.
Goldman Sachs cut 3,200 employees in January, its second round of redundancies within three months, while Morgan Stanley’s planned 3,000 job reductions are also the second time it has reduced headcount within six months.
Sharma said that the longer-term plan for William Blair was to continue to bulk up in Europe.
“Europe has been a region where we are continuing to invest in as part of that longer-term thesis,” said Sharma. “I think we’re incredibly differentiated in this market.”
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