Southpaw: Lazard lands Greek mandate as investment banks seek relevance with government work

A mandate advising Greece on a potential restructuring — understood to have been won by Lazard — is the highest profile piece of business going for bankers working for government clients. But governments everywhere are providing banks with a stream of advisory and capital markets mandates. It’s a tricky, low-fee business, writes David Rothnie, but is becoming essential in order for banks to stay in the flow of investment banking