MUMBAI: Citi on Wednesday appointed Kaustubh Kulkarni as co-head of investment banking for Japan, Asia North and Australia (JANA) and Asia South, according to a memo accessed by Mint.
Based in Singapore, Kulkarni will start his new role in December, pending necessary approvals. He will work alongside Jan Metzger, who is the managing director and head of Asia-Pacific banking, capital markets, and advisory. Kulkarni brings nearly three decades of experience from his previous role at JP Morgan, where he was involved in major M&A, debt, and equity transactions for clients across Asia and India.
His appointment comes a month after Citi announced Vikram Chavali as managing director, head of global asset managers for JANA and Asia South. Chavali joins from Goldman Sachs, where he was Head of Asia ex-Japan Sponsors M&A. He will be based in Hong Kong and is expected to join Citi later this year.
Additionally, Deepak Dangayach has been appointed managing director and co-head of debt capital markets for JANA and Asia South. Dangayach, who previously worked at Deutsche Bank and UBS, will also join the firm later this year and be based in Hong Kong.
Citi has seen steady momentum in its investment banking division and has led equity offerings including Nissan Motor in Japan, Chinese healthcare companies – Hansoh Pharmaceutical and Ascletis Pharma Inc in Hong Kong, JSW Cement and One 97 Communications in India and CapitaLand in Singapore over the last month.
According to Dealogic data, Citi has raised approximately $200 billion for its Asia-Pacific clients from local and global capital markets since the beginning of this year. The firm’s investment banking revenues have grown by 15% to $981 million from the previous year. This growth was fuelled by a 52% increase in advisory fees and a 25% rise in Equity Capital Markets fees, driven by strong performance in convertible securities and initial public offerings.