Jefferies, a global securities and investment banking firm, has appointed Naomi Fink as Japan equity strategist, effective March 1. Fink, who joined the firm from Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi, is responsible for analysing and forecasting trends and macroeconomic strategy for Japan, based in the firm’s Tokyo office.
“Naomi brings experience, knowledge and relationships to our global equities platform and will help support Jefferies’ continuing growth and success,” said Jason Griffith, global head of equities at Jefferies. “As we continue to extend our firm’s capabilities in Asia, her hiring further demonstrates Jefferies’ commitment to providing our institutional clients with valuable insight and perspective.”
Fink worked as a Japan strategist at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi. Prior to that she was head of foreign exchange research for the Americas at BNP Paribas, where she spent four years in a variety of foreign exchange strategy positions in Tokyo, New York, Paris and Singapore. And, earlier in her career, she was a foreign exchange strategist at UBS in Singapore and Tokyo.
“We are delighted that Naomi is joining our global equities team. She is a highly regarded strategist, with in-depth knowledge of the Japanese markets and the economic landscape. Her hiring is the next step in our strategy of building out a world-class equity sales and trading business in Japan,” added Jim Muir, head of equities Japan at Jefferies.
Jefferies is establishing a full-service equity sales, trading and research capability focused on Asia, including Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Korea and Taiwan. As part of this build-out, Jefferies recently announced the appointment of Michael Alexander as CEO of Jefferies Asia, Nilesh Jasani as head of Asia-Pacific research and Chris Shute as head of Asian sales and sales trading.
It has been establishing itself on the M&A front with oil and gas transactions, including representing Chesapeake in late February when BHP Billiton paid $4.75 billion for Chesapeake Energy’s Fayetville shale gas assets in the US. It’s also representing Encana in the $5.4 billion sale to PetroChina of a 50% stake in its natural gas assets, which is the largest investment by a Chinese company in Canada. But it’s also making its presence known on non-energy deals, including advising and raising debt for iGate, which, backed by private-equity firm Apax Partners, will pay $1.22 billion for India’s Patni Computer Systems in India’s largest private equity-backed buyout to date.
Jefferies recently initiated equity research coverage in Asia, adding more than 45 companies in China and Hong Kong to its global coverage.
