Lazard

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Lazard

Type	Public (NYSE: LAZ)
Founded	1848
Headquarters	New York
Key people	Bruce Wasserstein, Chairman & CEO
Industry	Investment services
Products	Financial Services Investment Banking Investment management
Revenue	$1.39 billionUSD (2006)
Net income	$80 million USD (2006)
Employees	2,200 (2006)
Website	www.lazard.com

Lazard Ltd. (NYSE: LAZ) is the parent company of Lazard LLC, a New York-based, independent investment bank with approximately 2,200 employees in Europe, North America, Asia and Australia. Lazard was founded in 1848, and remained privately held until May 5, 2005, when the company conducted an initial public offering of its shares. In connection with its IPO, Lazard spun off its securities underwriting business, Lazard Capital Markets, which is now an independent firm.

Today, the investment banking arm is known to be the world's preeminent financial advisor that participates in the most significant and industry-defining mergers & acquisitions transactions.

1 History
2 Management
3 Notable employees
- 3.1 Business
- 3.2 Politics and public service
4 External links

[edit] History

Lazard's origins date back to 1848 when the founders, the Lazard brothers, Alexandre Lazard, Simon Lazard, and Elie Lazard, moved to the United States from Lorraine, France, and formed Lazard Frères & Co. as a dry goods business in New Orleans, Louisiana, with a combined contribution of $ 9,000. Shortly thereafter, the Lazard brothers moved to the gold rush town of San Francisco, California, where they opened a business selling imported goods and exporting gold bullion. The business progressively became involved in financial transactions, first with its retail clients and then increasingly with commercial clients. Over time, the business expanded into the banking and foreign exchange businesses.

Seeking to expand operations to Europe, the Lazard brothers opened offices in Paris and London in 1858 and 1870, respectively. By 1876, Lazard’s businesses had become solely focused on providing financial services. In 1880, Alexander Weill, the founding brothers’ cousin, assumed control of Lazard.

The period between the two wars saw Lazard ensuring a supremacy in the banking world under the direction of Raymond Philippe, followed by André Meyer

Post World War II saw the American operations expand significantly as a merger and acquisitions specialist under the leadership of André Meyer and Felix Rohatyn.

Lazard has advised on several large and significant transactions, including cross-border and consortia assignments:
$17 billion transaction - Supervalu on its acquisition of Albertson's (2006)
$14 billion transaction - Duke Energy on its acquisition of Cinergy (2006)
$10 billion transaction - MCI on its sale to Verizon Communications (2006)
$47 billion transaction - Nextel on its merger with Sprint Corp (2005)
$59 billion transaction - Bank One on its sale to JPMorgan (2004)
56 billion Euro transaction - Telecom Italia on its merger with Olivetti SPA (2003)
$61 billion transaction - Pfizer on its acquisition of Pharmacia (2003)
$72 billion transaction - Microsoft in the merger of Comcast and AT&T Broadband (2002)
$90 billion transaction - Pfizer on its acquisition of Warner Lambert (2000)
$29.4 billion transaction - RJR Nabisco on its sale to KKR

In 2005, Lazard advised on five of the nine "Deals of the Year" as cited by IDD:
M&A Deal of the Year - $38 billion - Mitsubishi Tokyo Financial Group on its merger with UFJ
Overall Deal of the Year, Private Equity Deal of the Year - $11 billion - Sunguard on its sale to consortium
Technology Deal of the Year - $10 billion - MCI on its sale to Verizon
Energy Deal of the Year - $14 billion - Duke Energy on its acquisition of Cinergy
Healthcare Deal of the Year - $525 million - GILEAD in its Royalty Agreement with Emory University

In May 2005, Lazard went public under the leadership of Bruce Wasserstein, ending over 150 years of private owership.