Acquisition · Investment banking
Mizuho to buy U.S. M&A advisory boutique Greenhill for about $550 million
- Buyer
- Mizuho Financial Group (Tokyo)
- Target
- Greenhill & Co., New York
- Value
- About $550M
- Status
- Completed on December 1, 2023.
- Date
- 2023-05-22
Mizuho agreed to acquire NYSE-listed Greenhill & Co. for $15 a share in cash, an enterprise value of about $550 million including assumed debt. Greenhill's brand, leaders and staff were kept as Mizuho's M&A and restructuring advisory business. Greenhill clients gain access to Mizuho's lending and capital markets products.
Why it matters
With the deal Mizuho filled the M&A advisory gap in its US investment-banking push, much as rival SMBC did through its Jefferies stake.
The terms
Mizuho announced the deal on May 22, 2023. The $15 a share was 121% above Greenhill's previous closing price. Greenhill had about 370 staff in 15 offices, including New York, London, Tokyo, Hong Kong and Sydney, and a 27-year history advising on mergers, restructurings and fundraising.
The people
Chairman and chief executive Scott Bok became chairman of Mizuho's M&A and restructuring advisory business. Co-presidents Kevin Costantino and David Wyles became its co-heads, inside Mizuho's Americas banking division led by Michal Katz. Bok said the independent model had served Greenhill well, but the market now favored joining a larger bank.
Mizuho in the Americas
Mizuho Americas, which completed the purchase on December 1, 2023, had about 3,000 staff in 15 offices and is the group's fastest-growing region. Mizuho said Greenhill adds to its capital markets, banking and private capital advisory businesses.
Sources
Kakehashi M&A News home
