Updated, 8:03 p.m. |
Three senior executives of Barclays are expected to leave the firm, in the latest wave of departures from the British firm as it prepares to reduce the size and ambitions of its investment bank while battling concerns about its bankers’ compensation.
Paul G. Parker, the firm’s head of mergers and acquisitions, is expected to leave soon, a person briefed on the matter said on Friday.
Earlier in the day, UBS announced that it had hired Ros Stephenson, Barclays’ global chairman of investment banking, to a top role overseeing the Swiss firm’s corporate advisory business. And Robert Morrice, the chairman and chief executive of Barclays’ Asia-Pacific arm, announced that he plans to retire.
The exits of the three executives follows the departure of Hugh E. McGee III, the head of Barclays’ American operations and one of the firm’s top deal makers, two days ago.
Barclays has been moving to scale back its investment banking, reflecting tougher new regulations and fallout from a rates-fixing scandal that led to the departure of Robert E. Diamond as chief executive. The bank is expected to reveal its outlines for its newly reorganized investment bank next week.
Three of the four departing executives joined Barclays when it acquired the American investment banking operations of Lehman Brothers during the crisis, a move meant to transform the British firm into a powerhouse on Wall Street. (Mr. Morrice had been with the bank for 17 years.)
Mr. McGee, Mr. Parker and Ms. Stephenson, all of whom were based in New York, were all seen as key members of that initiative, which pushed the firm into the company of more established American banks. Its mergers practice, for instance, ranks sixth worldwide for the year to date, according to Thomson Reuters.
Mr. Parker, who had been one of Lehman’s two co-heads of mergers, has kept busy even until today. Among the assignments on his plate are Valeant’s $46 billion takeover bid for the maker of Botox and Comcast‘s $45 billion deal for Time Warner Cable.
It isn’t clear where he will go next. News of his impending departure was reported earlier by The Financial Times.
Meanwhile, Ms. Stephenson will become the global chairman of corporate client solutions, UBS’s name for investment banking activities like mergers advisory, industry coverage and financing. She will also lead corporate client solutions in the Americas.
In her new role, which begins in September, she will solidify her position as one of the most prominent women investment bankers on Wall Street.
While at Lehman, Ms. Stephenson founded the firm’s financial sponsors team, which catered to private equity firms like Kohlberg Kravis Roberts. She rose up the leadership ranks both there and then at Barclays, where she served as co-head of corporate finance and mergers and acquisitions from 2008 to 2013. Her most recent role was global chairwoman of the investment banking division.
A Barclays spokeswoman said in a statement: “We wish Ros the best in her new management role.”
UBS has been rebuilding its investment bank after years of turmoil. Over recent years, it has hired a number of prominent leaders, including Robert J. McCann, the chief executive of its Americas operations; Andrea Orcel, a former Merrill Lynch executive who now leads firm’s investment bank; and Laurence Grafstein, a longtime deal maker who co-heads mergers advisory in the Americas.
At UBS, Ms. Stephenson will report to Mr. Orcel. As at Barclays, her responsibilities will include catering to the firm’s biggest clients and helping bring in new ones.
“Ros is an extremely accomplished, market-leading professional with extensive client and transaction experience,” Mr. Orcel said in a statement. “Her insights and expertise will be invaluable to us as we continue to grow the C.C.S. business, particularly in the Americas.”
Ms. Stephenson added in a statement: “I am excited to be joining a world class organization. As the investment banking landscape continues to evolve, I believe that the firm’s global reach and areas of expertise, coupled with dedication to its client centric model, position UBS as a leading player in global financial services.”
David Gelles contributed reporting.