Lehman Brothers has hired Raj Dhown, a hard-charging senior credit salesman and latterly co-head of Deutsche Bank's CDO origination and distribution in Europe and Asia. Dhown, contacted on his cellphone, declined comment. Market watchers said he was regarded as an aggressive salesman and a cash cow for the German bank. He left in July citing personal reasons (DW, 7/11) and following a string of resignations of staff working under him.
Dhown is expected to start at the U.S. house in December where he will head U.K. credit sales in a newly-created slot, said an official at the firm, adding he will report to Philippe Dufournier, managing director in the structured credit solutions group. The exact nature of his role could not be determined. One market watcher said Lehman is "chuffed" to have landed Dhown. Dufournier did not return calls and Vanessa Oakes, spokeswoman for Lehman in London, was unable to provide comment.
Prior to joining Deutsche, Dhown ran the U.K. financial institutions group at JPMorgan, where he marketed and structured interest rate and credit derivatives for Europe. At Deutsche Bank he was co-head of CDO distribution to Europe and Asia with Fritz Thomas. Jo Pope, spokeswoman at Deutsche Bank in London, did not comment on who had replaced Dhown by press time.
