Oct 8 (Reuters) - Investment banker John LaVoie is

joining Citigroup ( C/PN ) to head up its U.S. West Coast private

equity dealmaking unit, according to an internal memo seen by

Reuters on Tuesday.

LaVoie, who has covered buyout firms for 24 years, will be

based in San Francisco and report to Michael Marcus and Michael

Quadrino, who are the co-heads of Citi's global asset managers

unit in North America.

He joins the New York-based bank from Wells Fargo ( WFC ),

where he was responsible for growing its private equity M&A

business on the West Coast. Prior to Wells Fargo ( WFC ), LaVoie worked

at JPMorgan Chase ( JPM ) and RBC Capital Markets where

he advised on deals involving buyout firms.

"John's combination of skills and deep relationships in the

large West Coast sponsors market will add to (our) strong

momentum and enhance Citi's impact with client segments,

particularly those in tech and healthcare," Marcus and Quadrino

said in the memo.

A spokesperson for Citi confirmed the contents of the memo.

The latest hire comes at a time when buyout firms, armed

with tens of billions of dollars, are preparing to deploy the

capital and ramp up dealmaking as the U.S. Federal Reserve has

started cutting interest rates.

Lower rates bode well for private equity firms, whose

debt-fueled buyouts were hit hard by the Fed's aggressive rate

hikes in the aftermath of the pandemic to fight inflation.

For the quarter ended September 30, global private

equity-led buyouts jumped 42%, compared to the same period a

year earlier, according to Dealogic data.

Notable private equity deals that Citi has advised on

recently include Elliott Investment Management's $7.3 billion

bid for refiner Citgo Petroleum, and Lone Star Funds' $3 billion

purchase of the commercial and residential fire business of

Carrier Global ( CARR ).