(Reuters) – Lazard Ltd on Thursday reported a 34% drop in second-quarter profit as dealmaking globally stood at a fraction of last year’s record levels.
The bank also said it has appointed Mary Ann Betsch as its chief financial officer, effective October, to replace Evan L. Russo, who has held the role since 2017.
Dealmaking activity has come to a crashing halt this year after a stellar run in 2021 as companies put their stock market listings and multi-billion dollar mergers on ice, retreating on spiraling global markets and fears of an impending recession.
Investment banks that spent most of last year advising on these deals and raking in billions in underwriting revenues in the process, have been some of the worst hit units of the current downturn across the United States.
Revenue from Lazard’s financial advisory unit dipped 14% to $407 million, while its asset management arm revenue fell 23% to $266 million.
Total operating revenue in the quarter fell 18% to $676 million.
The bank reported adjusted net income of $96 million, or 92 cents per share, for the quarter ended June 30, compared with $146 million, or $1.28 per share, a year earlier.
(Reporting by Manya Saini in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)
