BNP Paribas Strengthens its Trans-Atlantic Corridor Business with Senior Investment Banking Appointments

November 14, 2023

New York, November 14, 2023 – BNP Paribas announces the appointment of several senior executives within its Global Banking business, building out advisory and solutions capabilities in the Americas to support the growth ambitions of its global client base particularly large Multi-National Corporates (MNC) and further aligning its global banking platform: 

Chris Blum is appointed Head of Corporate Clients Group North America to drive additional expansion of the client franchise and growth of the Sectors & Advisory teams.  Chris continues shared oversight of the Americas Financial Sponsor Coverage Group. 

Vanessa Dager joins as Head of Advisory North America to lead M&A franchise development.  Vanessa brings more than two decades of M&A and investment banking experience, most recently at Wells Fargo and Credit Suisse.  Vanessa started her career in various investment banking roles at Citigroup and Stern Stewart.

Mark Lynagh and Adnan Zuberi are appointed Co-Heads of Global Capital Markets Americas, and Mark is additionally appointed Global Head of Investment Grade Finance.  Mark will relocate from London to New York, and primarily focus on Investment Grade Finance, Leveraged Finance & Equity Capital Markets, while Adnan will primarily focus on Asset Finance & Securitization across Real Assets & Securitized Products Group. 

Evan Riley joins as Head of Equity Capital Markets Americas to lead the expansion of the platform as a part of the cash equities growth plan in the Americas.  Evan brings 17 years of ECM experience at UBS Investment Bank where he most recently oversaw several sectors.

Erin Brown returns to New York from London as Head of Leveraged Finance Americas to lead the continued development of the franchise with both corporate and financial sponsor clients.  Erin rejoins the Americas platform following 11 years in Leveraged Finance EMEA, most recently as Deputy Head of EMEA Leveraged Finance Syndicate.

Richard Meth is Head of Commercial Real Estate Americas within Asset Finance & Securitization and launches the CRE financing and securitization activities in the region, building on the bank’s leading real estate franchise in Europe.  Richard has over two decades of experience, most recently leading US CRE financing at Deutsche Bank and prior at JPMorgan Investment Management.

Alexandre Barjon is appointed Head of French Corporates in North America.  Alexandre joined the US platform from the bank’s head office in Paris where he was the Chief of Staff to the Chairman of CIB.  His mandate is to develop the business with the bank’s French clients in North America.

Urs Waschkeit is appointed Head of German Corporates in North America.  Urs will be relocating from Hamburg, Germany, where he was Head of Corporate Coverage for Northern Germany, to join the US platform and develop the business with German clients in North America.

Andy Strait is now Vice Chairman of US Corporate Banking in EMEA.  Andy recently moved from New York, where he was one of the most senior bankers in the Americas, to Paris with a directive to represent the CIB Americas franchise in EMEA and will act as a senior US representative with US MNCs, and as an ambassador for the bank’s US business with EMEA clients.

José Placido, Chief Executive Officer of BNP Paribas USA and CIB Americas, said: “These appointments build on the significant progress we’ve made in aligning our global banking business across the Americas, EMEA and APAC to accelerate the execution of our international strategy.  We welcome the whole team to the Americas region and the worldwide team, and look forward to this exciting next phase of our platform’s development.”

Matthew Salvner, Head of Global Banking Americas and Head of Global Credit Americas at BNP Paribas, said:“The expansion of our global banking capabilities in the Americas is a central pillar of our CIB growth plans for 2025 and beyond.  These new appointments will enable us to better serve our clients around the world and continue to drive growth in both our Global Banking and Global Markets platforms.”

BNP Paribas CIB group is a globally recognized leader offering Corporate and Institutional clients capital markets, securities services, financing, treasury and advisory solutions, among others.  The group operates in 53 countries with over 20,000 clients and 38,000 employees worldwide.  MNCs are companies with business operations in at least one other country other than its home country and generates substantial revenues abroad. 

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Press Contacts:

Guy Taylor

+1 (332) 323-3704

guild.taylor@us.bnpparibas.com

Mylene Benmoussa

+1 (646) 322-5221

mylene.benmoussa@us.bnpparibas.com

About BNP Paribas

BNP Paribas is the European Union’s leading bank and key player in international banking. It operates in 65 countries and has nearly 185,000 employees, including more than 145,000 in Europe. The Group has key positions in its three main fields of activity: Commercial, Personal Banking & Services for the Group’s commercial & personal banking and several specialised businesses including BNP Paribas Personal Finance and Arval; Investment & Protection Services for savings, investment and protection solutions; and Corporate & Institutional Banking, focused on corporate and institutional clients. Based on its strong diversified and integrated model, the Group helps all its clients (individuals, community associations, entrepreneurs, SMEs, corporates and institutional clients) to realise their projects through solutions spanning financing, investment, savings and protection insurance. In Europe, BNP Paribas has four domestic markets: Belgium, France, Italy and Luxembourg. The Group is rolling out its integrated commercial & personal banking model across several Mediterranean countries, Turkey, and Eastern Europe. As a key player in international banking, the Group has leading platforms and business lines in Europe, a strong presence in the Americas as well as a solid and fast-growing business in Asia-Pacific. BNP Paribas has implemented a Corporate Social Responsibility approach in all its activities, enabling it to contribute to the construction of a sustainable future, while ensuring the Group’s performance and stability.