Deutsche Bank's Peter Babej Said to Leave German Firm to Join Citigroup

Citigroup Inc. hired Deutsche Bank AG’s co-head of Americas financial institutions, Peter Babej, marking at least the seventh departure this year of a senior investment banker from the German firm, a person briefed on the move said.

Babej, 47, will work in New York as global co-head of financial institutions with David Head, the person said, declining to be identified because the move is not public. He joined the Frankfurt-based bank in 2007 and was a key member of a team that prepared an initial public offering, which was later put on hold, for American International Group Inc.’s biggest Asian life insurance unit. He previously worked 11 years at Lazard Ltd, where he was a managing director for insurance- industry clients.

Deutsche Bank spokesman John Gallagher and Citigroup spokeswoman Danielle Romero-Apsilos said they couldn’t comment. Babej didn’t return a phone call seeking comment.

Nomura Holdings Inc., Japan’s largest brokerage, said this week it hired Deutsche Bank’s Mark Epley as co-head of a unit that advises buyout firms. Nomura also recruited Michael Hill and James DeNaut as co-heads of global natural resources, two people familiar with the situation said June 2. Morgan Stanley hired Jonathan Cox and Michael Johnson from Deutsche Bank’s energy group, people briefed on the moves said this month.

The departures come amid a shift in leadership at Deutsche Bank’s corporate and investment bank, the company’s biggest money maker. Anshu Jain, co-head of that business since 2004, was appointed this week to be its sole leader, assuming responsibilities for the corporate finance and transaction- banking units on July 1 from Michael Cohrs, who plans to retire.

Last year, New York-based AIG picked Deutsche Bank to be co-global coordinator of an IPO for AIA Group Ltd. The offering was put on hold earlier this year in favor of a $35.5 billion sale of the business to Prudential Plc. That deal collapsed, leaving AIG to develop a new plan for divesting the business.

To contact the reporter on this story: Serena Saitto in New York at ssaitto@bloomberg.net.