Barclays appoints new co-heads of investment banking

By Lawrence White

LONDON (Reuters) - Barclays has promoted JF Astier and John Miller to lead its investment banking business, as part of a new management team to oversee the business that mainly advises on big corporate deals such as mergers and stock market listings.

The bank said the team, which will also include the heads of divisions such as human resources, compliance, legal and risk, will help its decision making to be more globally consistent and strategic.

Astier was previously global head of capital markets and mergers and acquisitions, while Miller was global head of coverage investment banking.

The British bank also said its co-heads of equity capital markets for the Americas, Kristin Roth DeClark and Taylor Wright, will become global co-heads of the overall capital markets business.

Barclays also appointed Travis Barnes as global head of its financial sponsors group, which mainly serves large private equity investors, and Marco Valla as head of its technology, media and telecommunications coverage.

Barclays' investment bank has enjoyed a strong run in recent quarters, as volatile markets during the pandemic led to frenzied trading, while companies have raised record amounts through blank-cheque investment funds and stock listings.

The latest reshuffle in the bank's investment banking unit comes as Barclays prepares to report first half earnings on Wednesday.

Rival U.S. banks such as JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs have in recent weeks smashed analysts' estimates for first-half profits, buoyed by record dealmaking from a backlog of corporate fundraising built up during the pandemic.

(Reporting By Lawrence White. Editing by Jane Merriman)