Dec 3 (Reuters) - Lazard ( LAZ ) has hired veteran

Citigroup ( C/PN ) investment banker Chris Miller as a managing

director to help drive its dealmaking efforts in the energy

industry, people familiar with the matter told Reuters on

Tuesday.

Miller, who is based in Houston and held the title of vice

chairman of energy investment banking at Citigroup ( C/PN ), resigned

from his position at the Wall Street bank recently and will

start his new role at Lazard ( LAZ ) in early 2025 after a period of

gardening leave, the sources said.

In his new role, Miller will report to George Bilicic, who

runs Lazard's ( LAZ ) power, energy, and infrastructure investment

banking unit, the sources said, requesting anonymity as the

matter is confidential.

Miller, a 30-year investment banking veteran, spent the

majority of his career at Citigroup ( C/PN ) where he advised energy

companies on notable deals including APA Corp's ( APA ) $4.5

billion acquisition of Callon Petroleum. Prior to Citigroup ( C/PN ),

Miller worked at Lehman Brothers, according to his LinkedIn

profile.

Lazard ( LAZ ) and Citigroup ( C/PN ) declined to comment.

Lazard's ( LAZ ) push to boost its energy dealmaking ranks follows a

record-breaking run of mergers and acquisitions in the U.S.

energy industry, driven by consolidation among oil and gas

producers that have pursued targets with the best drilling sites

in lucrative shale locations such as the Permian Basin.

New York-based Lazard ( LAZ ) has been bolstering its financial

advisory unit with several top-level recruits, as dealmaking

across sectors has started to rebound in recent months after a

period of slower M&A activity due to higher interest rates and

market volatility.

In its third-quarter earnings report, the bank said it added

16 managing directors to its ranks in the year to Oct. 31, with

revenue from the financial advisory unit up 39% during the

quarter from the same period a year ago.