KBW bolsters European investment banking team

Alistair McKay of KBW — Alistair McKay, KBW

Rachel Lewis
13 January 2023

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KBW, the specialist financial services investment bank wholly owned by Stifel, has promoted Alistair McKay as head of its European arm, as well as hiring two new managing directors.

Alex Smith joins from six years leading UK M&A at Santander, while Gonzalo Smolders joins from six years as a managing director in HSBC’s FIG arm.

Based in London, the new team will help KBW expand its European banking presence and increase its offering to clients, the bank said in a statement.

McKay joined KBW as managing director in June 2018, with the bank mostly recently serving as a joint bookrunner on Credit Suisse’s CHF 2.24bn rights offering and as the buyside advisor of Butterfield’s acquisition of Credit Suisse’s international trust businesses in Singapore, Guernsey and the Bahamas.

Smith has executed transactions in all financial subsectors, including asset management, fintech and insurance, with a particular focus on banking and specialty finance, while Smolders has experience in capital raising and transaction advisory.

KBW appears to have stepped back from sponsor-led M&A in recent years, last advising on GP All Seas Capital's investment in British financial planning group Attivo in June 2021, according to Unquote Data.