Aug 8 (Reuters) - Investment bank Lazard ( LAZ ) has

hired Courtney Haydon from Guggenheim Securities as a managing

director to help drive dealmaking involving private equity firms

and alternative asset managers, a person familiar with the

matter said on Thursday.

Haydon will join Lazard's ( LAZ ) financial sponsors coverage group

in the coming months, the source said, requesting anonymity as

the matter is confidential.

The latest hire is part of a broader recruiting push from

Lazard ( LAZ ) in its efforts to win more business from buyout firms.

This year, Lazard ( LAZ ) has hired nine investment bankers at the

managing director level, including Adam Cady from Bank of

America ( BAC ) to run large-cap financial sponsor coverage in

North America, and former Citigroup dealmaker Ali Syed to

cover sovereign wealth funds and pension funds.

Haydon held a similar role at Guggenheim as a senior

managing director for financial sponsor investment banking.

Prior to Guggenheim, Haydon worked at SL Green Realty ( SLG/PI )

and Bank of America ( BAC ), according to her LinkedIn profile.

Lazard ( LAZ ) declined to comment. Guggenheim did not respond to a

request for comment.

Deal activity involving financial sponsors has rebounded

this year as buyout firms have deployed more capital, after a

spike in financing costs last year triggered a slowdown in

dealmaking. Global leveraged buyout volumes jumped 41% to $286

billion during the first half of 2024, according to data from

Dealogic.

On an earnings call last month, Lazard ( LAZ ) CEO Peter Orszag said

private equity-led M&A activity is expected to continue

increasing as interest rates come down.