Greenhill & Company, the boutique investment bank, is building up its division for private equity and real estate clients as it turns to new sources of revenue.
The firm on Wednesday announced three new hires in its private capital advisory group, a relatively new business that advises firms on raising capital. Greenhill is betting that the division will become a significant source of fees, at a time when merger-related work can be scarce.
Matt DeNatale, a former principal at Lazard, and Zaid Abdul-Aleem, a former partner at Piedmont Investment Advisors, are joining Greenhill as principals in the capital advisory team, the firm said in a statement. Mr. DeNatale will be based on San Francisco, and Mr. Abdul-Aleem, a onetime Fulbright scholar, will work in Chicago.
The firm is also hiring Sally Adele Box from QIC Global Infrastructure, an infrastructure investment firm, to be a vice president based in Sydney, Australia.
“These important additions to our team demonstrate our belief that the Capital Advisory business has the potential to grow into a significant contributor to the firm's revenue and profitability,†Scott L. Bok, Greenhill's chief executive, said in a statement.
Greenhill, an independent investment bank founded by Robert F. Greenhill, had a profitable first quarter and kept up a healthy stream of business last year, in spite of an uncertain market for deals. But the firm stumbled in the second quarter of this year, reporting a 90 percent drop in profit as advisory revenue fell.
The firm is looking to its capital advisory division for more revenue. That business accounted for 9 percent of the firm's revenue last year, offering what Mr. Bok called its “first significant†contribution.
Last year, Greenhill grappled with several defections by senior executives amid a sagging stock price. The firm's stock is now up about 27 percent since the beginning of this year.
Mr. Bok said the new hires would expand the capital advisory group's reach in the United States and give it access to Australia.
