Bank of America’s Australian investment bank morphs into regional hub

afr.com:

Bank of America has made two high-profile changes in its investment bank, building on a successful strategy of elevating Australian bankers into broader regional roles this year.

Mark Warburton, an ex-Macquarie banker who joined BofA in 2019 as its head of equity capital markets, will become vice chairman for Asia-Pacific investment banking.

Bank of America’s local head of investment banking will bring in a new equity capital markets head from the bank’s New York office. Michel O’Sullivan

Warburton’s work as ECM head helped BofA climb to the number one regional bank for convertible bond issuance in 2022, Dealogic data showed. One of his biggest local transactions includes leading the $5.6 billion equity raising for CSL back in December 2021.

Replacing him as local ECM head is New York-based Yuta Kambe, who will relocate to Sydney next month. Managing director Mr Kambe, who joined Merrill Lynch in Japan in 2008, currently sits on BofA’s ECM syndicate desk.

Mr Warburton will report to BofA’s regional corporate and investment banking head, Peter Guenthardt, who is based in Hong Kong. Mr Kambe will report to Hong Kong-based Matthew Basler, BofA’s head global capital markets for APAC.

Mr Warburton and Mr Kambe’s appointments follow the promotion of four Australian BofA managing directors in the last five months, who saw their roles enlarged to APAC status from local ones.

Half of Asia-Pacific’s 10 largest announced M&A transactions last year involved Australian assets or local companies conducting cross-border deals like Brookfield and EIG Partners’ $18.2 billion purchase of Origin Energy.

BofA’s decision to elevate its senior Australians is also a nod to the bank’s – and by extension, the country’s – pool of experienced