Germany's Commerzbank Loses 2 High-Profile Investment Bankers

By Eyk Henning

FRANKFURT--Commerzbank AG (CBK.XE) has suffered a setback with the departure of two high-profile investment bankers, as the continued sluggish market environment dampens activity.

The bank's global head of mergers and acquisitions, Philipp Mohr, told Dow Jones Newswires that he is leaving the bank to join William Blair in an effort to strengthen the investment-banking and asset-management firm's global M&A advisory business starting early next year.

Mr. Mohr made a name for himself in the sector through advising on the sale of German generic drug maker Ratiopharm to Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (TEVA) for 3.6 billion euros ($4.65 billion) and U.S. construction machinery maker Terex Corp.'s (TEX) acquisition of the German crane maker Demag Cranes, worth around EUR960 million.

Ute Gerbaulet, head of Commerzbank's equity capital markets business, has already left the bank, a spokeswoman confirmed Thursday.

Ms. Gerbaulet led the bank's more than EUR11 billion capital increase last year in a move to repay billions of state aid that the bank received in the course of the financial crisis.

The equity capital advisory business is suffering from a drought on the Continent's equity capital markets. Proceeds from capital increases and initial public offerings in Europe fell 45% to $73.5 billion year to date, according to data from Thomson Reuters.

Write to Eyk Henning at [e-mail]

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