MainFirst Bank AG, a leading independent European equity research and trading firm, will acquire the institutional brokerage business in European equities from Raymond James in Paris and London effective December 1, 2018. As part of this acquisition, MainFirst will also add 29 employees from Raymond James in Paris including Research, Sales and Sales Trading and a further six Research employees in London. These individuals will be integrated into the MainFirst organisation. The acquisition will strengthen MainFirst’s strategic position, particularly in France. “With this step, we will achieve economies of scale, better leverage our competitive advantages in the new world of MiFiD II and an expanded platform to serve our clients,” said Ebrahim Attarzadeh, CEO and Head of Equities at MainFirst Bank AG. As a result of the acquisition, the number of European shares covered by MainFirst sees a rise by approximately a quarter to 400, with the number of MainFirst’s institutional clients in France also increasing significantly. Source: MainFirst Bank AG And receive exclusive articles on securities markets
Raymond James is selling its European institutional equity brokerage business to MainFirst Bank, as the German-based broker seeks to scale its business in the wake of MiFID II. The deal will see Raymond James' Europe retail arm become a subsidiary of MainFirst, which has been operating under the name Raymond James International since it was founded by former Lehman Brothers banker John Mack in 1986.