Lazard

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For other uses, see Lazard (disambiguation).
Lazard Inc.
Formerly
  • Lazard Ltd
  • Lazard Frères & Co.
Company typePublic
IndustryFinancial services
FoundedJuly 12, 1848; 177 years ago (1848-07-12)
New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S.
Founders
Headquarters30 Rockefeller Plaza, New York City, U.S.
Key people
Products
RevenueIncrease US$3.05 billion (2024)
Increase US$386 million (2024)
Increase US$280 million (2024)
AUMDecrease US$226 billion (2024)
Total assetsIncrease US$4.79 billion (2024)
Total equityIncrease US$636 million (2024)
Number of employees
3,263 (2024)
Websitelazard.com
Footnotes / references
[1]

Lazard Inc. (formerly known as Lazard Ltd and Lazard Frères & Co.) is a financial advisory and asset management firm that engages in investment banking, asset management and other financial services, primarily with institutional clients. It is the world's largest independent investment bank, with principal executive offices in New York City, Paris and London.[2]

Lazard was founded in 1848 and operates from 41 cities across 26 countries in North America, Europe, Asia, Australia, and Central and South America.[3] The firm provides advice on mergers and acquisitions, strategic matters, restructuring and capital structure, capital raising and corporate finance, as well as asset management services to corporations, partnerships, institutions, governments and individuals.[3]

History

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Early years

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On July 12, 1848, three French brothers, Alexandre Lazard, Lazare Lazard, and Simon Lazard, founded Lazard Frères & Co. as a dry goods merchant store in New Orleans, Louisiana. By 1851, Simon and two more brothers, Maurice and Elie, had all moved to San Francisco, California, while Alexandre moved to New York. With the Gold Rush in full swing, the brothers traded in gold between San Francisco and Western Europe.[4]

In 1854, Alexandre Lazard moved to Paris, France, where he opened an office to complement the U.S. business. The firm began advising the French government on gold buying. In 1870, the firm continued to expand its international operations, opening an office in London as well.[5]

The name "Lazard Frères" means "Lazard Brothers" or "the Brothers Lazard" in French. It refers to associations of the Lazard brothers to form various financial services institutions with world-wide offices and investments.

The Three Houses of Lazard

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In the late 1800s and early 1900s, the firm evolved into three "Houses of Lazard" in the United States, France, and the United Kingdom, separately managed but allied. The Lazard partners advised clients on financial matters and built a cross-border network of high-level relationships in business and government. Noted financial advisor George Blumenthal rose to prominence as the head of the U.S. branch of Lazard Frères and was a partner of Lazard Frères in France.[5]

In the economic boom following World War II, the American operations of Lazard expanded significantly under the leadership of the French financier André Meyer. Meyer and Lazard partner Felix Rohatyn have been credited with virtually inventing the modern mergers and acquisitions (M&A) market.[6]

In 1953, Lazard Investors Ltd began an asset management business in London, which is the origin of today's Lazard Asset Management.[7]

A unified firm

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In 1977, as the health of Meyer began to deteriorate, the firm came to be controlled by Michel David-Weill. Under his leadership, the three houses of Lazard were formally united in 2000 as Lazard LLC.[8]

In 2002, David-Weill hired Bruce Wasserstein to be CEO. Lazard became a public company in 2005, with nearly two-thirds of its shares owned by current and former employees. Wasserstein became its first chairman and CEO. In connection with the initial public offering (IPO), Lazard spun off its broker-dealer business, Lazard Capital Markets.[6]

Following Wasserstein's death in 2009, Lazard's board of directors elected Kenneth M. Jacobs as chairman and CEO.[9]

During the Greek sovereign debt crisis, Lazard served as advisor to the Greek government, securing "the biggest restructuring deal in history" in 2012. They were hired again by the incoming Syriza party in 2015.[10] The crisis was finally resolved in 2018.[11]

Lazard invested in a startup investment bank, Independence Point Advisors, in late 2021.[12][13]

On May 26, 2023, the firm announced that Peter R. Orszag, CEO of Financial Advisory, had been unanimously elected by its Board to serve as CEO of Lazard and as a Board Director, effective October 1, 2023.[14] Orszag became chief executive officer of Lazard on October 1, 2023.[15] On January 1, 2025, Orszag's role expanded to serve as CEO and Chairman of Lazard's Board of Directors.[16]

The publicly traded partnership Lazard Ltd was reincorporated under the Delaware General Corporation Law effective January 1, 2024 and changed its name from Lazard Ltd to Lazard, Inc.[17]

In 2025, Lazard partnered with alternative credit firm Arini Capital Management to collaborate on sourcing and direct lending opportunities across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.[18]

In December 2025, Christopher Hogbin became the CEO of Lazard Inc.[19]

Business overview

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Financial advisory

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Lazard advises clients on a wide range of strategic and financial issues. The firm has advised on many of the largest restructuring assignments during and after the 2008 financial crisis.[20] Lazard's Sovereign Advisory group advises governments and sovereign entities on policy and financial issues.[21]

Asset management

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Lazard's asset management business provides investment management and financial advisory services. The firm manages assets on behalf of institutional clients (corporations, labor unions, public pension funds, endowments, foundations, insurance companies, and banks; and through sub-advisory relationships, mutual fund sponsors, broker-dealers and registered advisors) and individual clients (principally family offices and high-net-worth individuals).[3]

Office locations

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The bank operates[3] from 39 cities across 22 countries.[22]

In Paris, the Lazard offices were located successively at 17, boulevard Poissonnière (1885–1907);[5] 5–7, rue Pillet-Will (1907–1979);[5] 141, boulevard Haussmann (1979–2020);[23] and 175, boulevard Haussmann (since September 2020).[24]

Lazard's New York City headquarters spans the top floors of 30 Rockefeller Plaza,[25] including what used to be Room 5600, the former offices of the Rockefeller family dynasty.[26]

  • 17, boulevard Poissonnière, Paris
    17, boulevard Poissonnière, Paris
  • 5-7, rue Pillet-Will, Paris
    5-7, rue Pillet-Will, Paris
  • 121, boulevard Haussmann, Paris
    121, boulevard Haussmann, Paris
  • 175, boulevard Haussmann, Paris
    175, boulevard Haussmann, Paris

Management

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Past chairmen

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Board of directors

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Lazard's board of directors as of October 2025:[27]

Books

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  • de Rougemont, Guy D. (2010). Lazard Frères: Banquiers des Deux Mondes (1840–1939). Paris: Fayard. ISBN 978-2-213-66125-4.
  • Cohan, William D. (2007). The Last Tycoons: The Secret History of Lazard Frères & Co. New York: Doubleday. ISBN 978-0-385-51451-4.
  • Geisst, Charles R (2001). The Last Partnerships: Inside the Great Wall Street Money Dynasties. New York: McGraw-Hill. ISBN 0-07-136999-6.
  • Reich, Cary (1983). Financier: The Biography of André Meyer: A Story of Money, Power, and the Reshaping of American Business. New York: William Morrow & Co. ISBN 0-688-01551-4.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Lazard Inc. Annual Report (Form 10-K)". U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. 24 February 2025.
  2. ^ Indap, Sujeet; Massoudi, Arash; Fontanella-Khan, James (September 8, 2015). "Investment banking: Walking away from Wall Street". Financial Times.
  3. ^ a b c d "Lazard Ltd Annual Report (Form 10-K)". U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. 28 February 2022. Retrieved 12 April 2022.
  4. ^ "Lazard". Jewish Virtual Library.
  5. ^ a b c d Guy de Rougemont, Lazard Frères, Banquiers des Deux Mondes (1840–1939), Librairie Arthème Fayard, 2010
  6. ^ a b "Institutional Investor International Edition, November 2011 "The New House of Lazard"" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on May 9, 2013. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  7. ^ "Lazard website – About Lazard". Retrieved July 26, 2013.
  8. ^ William Cohan, Last Tycoons: The Secret History of Lazard Frères & Co, Doubleday, 2007
  9. ^ "Lazard Names Kenneth Jacobs as Its New Chief". The New York Times. November 17, 2009.
  10. ^ "Greek radicals play it safe with debt advisers Lazard". Reuters. 5 Feb 2015.
  11. ^ "Greece's Debt Crisis". Council on Foreign Relations.
  12. ^ Schatzker, Erik (22 November 2021). "Lazard Backs Wall Street Diversity With 'Salomon Sisters' Stake". www.bloomberg.com. Retrieved 22 November 2021.
  13. ^ Schatzker, Erik; Natarajan, Sridhar; Baker, Liana (24 September 2021). "'Salomon Sisters' Is Coming to Wall Street, Backed by Lazard". Retrieved 22 November 2021.
  14. ^ "Lazard Appoints Peter R. Orszag as CEO and Kenneth M. Jacobs as Executive Chairman". Lazard.com. May 26, 2023.
  15. ^ Hirsch, Lauren (May 26, 2023). "Lazard Names Peter Orszag to Succeed Ken Jacobs as C.E.O." The New York Times. Retrieved 1 October 2023.
  16. ^ Gillespie, Todd (2024-11-25). "Lazard Appoints Orszag to Chair Board as Ken Jacobs Steps Back". Bloomberg Law. Archived from the original on 2025-01-20. Retrieved 2025-06-05.
  17. ^ "Lazard Ltd Completes Conversion to a U.S. C-Corporation and is Renamed Lazard, Inc". Lazard.com. Retrieved 2024-01-27.
  18. ^ "Lazard and alt credit firm Arini team up for EMEA direct lending deals". Pensions & Investments. 2025-03-25. Retrieved 2025-03-26.
  19. ^ Gyftopoulou, Loukia. "Lazard Hires AllianceBernstein's Hogbin to Lead Asset Management". Bloomberg. Retrieved 16 December 2025.
  20. ^ McCracken, Jeffrey (January 14, 2012). "Lazard Appoints Kurtz Restructuring Chief After Ridings, Savage". Bloomberg.
  21. ^ "Lazard Reports 2013 fourth quarter earnings". Archived from the original on April 29, 2014. Retrieved March 17, 2014.
  22. ^ "Locations | Lazard". www.lazard.com. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
  23. ^ Alessandro Giacone (2015), Jean Guyot : Un financier humaniste, CNRS Editions
  24. ^ "Lazard Inaugurates its New Investment Banking Office in Paris" (PDF). Lazard. 10 September 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2022-07-11. Retrieved 2022-07-11.
  25. ^ "Lazard Takes More of 30 Rock". observer.com. 15 March 2011.
  26. ^ Makarechi, Kia (24 November 2014). "Rockefeller Family Leaving 30 Rockefeller Center for the First Time". The Hive.
  27. ^ "Leadership and Board Lazard". 31 December 2024.
  28. ^ Walton, Mark (June 6, 2000). "The Mount Royal Tunnel Electrification". Colin Churcher's Railway Pages. Archived from the original on January 18, 2012.
[edit]
  • Official website
  • Lazard Asset Management
  • Business data for Lazard Inc.: