Instead Lake will be based out of London, beginning his new global role in October.
As global head, Lake will oversee HSBCÆs debt capital markets business worldwide and will manage a team of some 250 professionals. He will report to Daniel Palmer, Head of Global Capital Markets.
ôIn addition to his broad geographic experience, his success in building corporate, public sector and emerging markets DCM businesses for Merrill Lynch will be a tremendous asset to us given HSBC's existing strong relationships with these client groups,ö says Daniel Palmer. ôSpencer's objective will be to ensure that we remain a leader in this field by providing a broader and more integrated DCM product capability, incorporating derivatives, structured products and asset and liability management, and working closely with our expanded Leveraged Finance team.ö
The move comes as somewhat of a surprise to many, and probably to some at Merrill Lynch in particular, since Lake had only recently been appointed to his newly created role, having been with the US investment bank for 17 years.
Lake was to be looked upon to expand Merrill Lynch's debt origination business in the region. His hiring was driven by the head office in New York, who wanted to spearhead Merrill's drive to become a major player in the high-grade investment space - and bolster Merrill's league table standings.
His non-arrival will not affect Merrill's high yield and leveraged finance franchise - the more profitable part of the debt business that Merrill has focused on in Asia under investment banking boss, Sheldon Trainor. However, it is a speedbump in the overall strategy - especially given the strong momentum Merrill has shown in the past couple of years. The idea of bringing someone of Lake's seniority and experience out was meant to further demonstrate its commitment to the region.
Lake joined Merrill Lynch in 1989 in investment banking in New York, and most recently was head of European corporate and public sector DCM, based in London. Prior to this role, he held positions around the globe including senior roles in real estate investment banking and ratings advisory services. He had previously been head of debt origination for Asia-Pacific, head of the European public sector group, and head of the Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa (CEEMEA) debt client group.
He started his career at JPMorgan in New York in 1987 in real estate investment banking.
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