Citi Hires JPM's Besseddik to Head Europe Health-Care Banking

Citigroup Inc. has announced that it has hired Cyril Besseddik from JPMorgan Chase & Co. to lead coverage of health-care companies in Europe, the Middle East and Africa for its investment bank.

Besseddik will be joining Citigroup's banking, capital markets advisory group in May and will be based in London, according to an internal memo seen by Bloomberg News. He was most recently co-head of EMEA health-care investment banking at JPMorgan.

The banker, who has worked for JPMorgan for more than seven years, is moving to Citigroup, according to a memo from JPMorgan. His LinkedIn profile shows that he has also worked at UBS Group AG and Merrill Lynch. A representative for Citigroup confirmed the contents of the memo.

"It feels like corporate M&A is back and activity levels are picking up," said Chuck Adams, who is vice chairman and global head of health-care, consumer and retail banking at Citigroup, in an interview Monday.

"There is a lot of interest from companies in the healthcare sector in pursuing mergers and acquisitions as a way to grow their businesses," he said.

Besseddik will report to Adams, as well as Jens Welter and Ignacio Gutierrez-Orrantia, who are co-heads of Citigroup’s BCMA business in EMEA.

Citigroup will continue to selectively expand its health-care team in Europe, according to Adams. Adams is a former Goldman Sachs Group Inc. banker who joined Citigroup in 2021.

"We expect to see increased M&A activity from European pharmaceutical companies as they look for growth opportunities," he said. "We are already beginning to see examples of this."

Citigroup has combined its global health-care investment banking business with its consumer and retail team, creating a “super group” to help win more mandates in those sectors. Health care has been one of the most prominent industries for dealmaking in recent years, though soaring valuations and a worsening economy have led to a slowdown in activity.

Some large transactions are still moving ahead, including Amgen Inc.'s $27.8 billion acquisition of Horizon Therapeutics Plc and Pfizer Inc.'s $11.6 billion deal for Biohaven Pharmaceutical Holding Co.

European health-care companies are on the lookout for deals to bolster their pipeline and are also pruning their portfolios as they seek growth. Merck KGaA has as much as €20 billion ($21.6 billion) of dealmaking firepower and is “scanning the market permanently,” Chief Executive Officer Belen Garijo said recently in Davos.

Dentsply Sirona Inc. is considering options for its bladder and bowel-control product unit Wellspect HealthCare, including a possible sale, Bloomberg News has reported. Qiagen NV is also considering a sale of a minority stake in its bioinformatics division, which could be valued at more than $1 billion.