UBS has hired a Deutsche Bank dealmaker to lead its coverage of private equity companies in Europe as the Swiss lender ups its ambitions for its investment bank.
Biliana Barboutova is set to join UBS as head of its financial sponsors group in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, according to a memo seen by Financial News.
She will join the bank in July to “focus on driving the European business, deepening our coverage of financial sponsors in the region, and increasing market shares across all products”, the memo from Simona Maellare and Terry Sullivan, the global co-heads of UBS’s alternative capital group, said.
Barboutova has spent nearly two decades at Deutsche Bank, most recently co-heading its financial sponsors group in Europe. The hire also sees Michael Abraham move to vice chair of global sponsors at UBS, where he will focus on top clients.
UBS has upped its ambitions for its investment bank in the wake of its acquisition of Credit Suisse. In Emea, it is targeting a top five position, while it is aiming for sixth place in the US where it has continued to hire senior dealmakers.
Private equity firms typically account for up to 40% of M&A activity, but volumes have yet to bounce back after a prolonged deal slump. However, some banks are betting on a recovery, with Goldman Sachs poaching Carsten Woehrn, who co-leads JPMorgan’s strategic investor group M&A, earlier in April.
Write to Paul Clarke at paul.clarke@dowjones.com
