Moelis & Co adds new semiconductor banker - memo

(Adds previous Moelis deals, that banker role will focus on electronics in addition to semiconductors)

By Liana B. Baker

July 13 (Reuters) - Moelis & Co has hired investment banker Zach Righellis as a managing director to build up a practice in semiconductors and electronics, one of the most active areas this year in technology dealmaking, the company said on Monday.

Righellis, who was at Barclays Plc (LSE: BARC.L - news) where he focused on clients in the United States, Europe, Asia and Israel, will be based in Palo Alto, California, and continue to work with global clients. Moelis made the announcement in a memo on Monday.

Semiconductor dealmaking has reached $79.7 billion so far this year, already surpassing every full year on record, with the exception of 2000, when M&A in the sector hit $115.5 billion.

Righellis represented semiconductor maker Silicon Image this year in its sale to connectivity chip maker Lattice Semiconductor Corp. Earlier in his career, he helped advise Qualcomm Inc on the divestiture of vehicle fleet technology company Omnitracs LLC to Vista Equity Partners, a private equity firm..

Moelis, a boutique advisory firm, has been adding to its technology, media and telecommunications investment banking ranks in recent months. It hired Barclays technology analyst Ben Reitzes as a managing director in March. Telecoms specialist Lawrence Chu, who joins from the U.S. Federal Communications Commission where he was a special adviser, will start later this summer.

Moelis recently advised Cast (Paris: FR0000072894 - news) & Crew, a Hollywood payroll services provider, on its sale to Silver Lake Partners as well as the software company Shore Group on an investment by Francisco Partners. (Reporting by Liana B. Baker; Editing by Bernard Orr and Jeffrey Benkoe)