JPMorgan names new co-heads of mid-cap M&A unit

(Reuters) - JPMorgan Chase has named Andrew Castaldo and Andrew Martin as co-heads of mid-cap mergers and acquisitions unit, housed within its commercial and investment bank, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters on Thursday.

Castaldo, with 25 years of experience in dealmaking, has worked at the largest U.S. lender since 2014. He most recently served as the head of the energy M&A unit.

Martin is set to join JPMorgan later in 2024, the memo said. He will be moving from rival Bank of America after an over 27-year stint at the second-largest U.S. lender.

He led BofA's emerging growth regional coverage M&A business - an equivalent to JPMorgan's mid-cap investment banking team.

JPMorgan serves more than 30,000 middle-market clients and advised on over 200 middle-market M&A transactions, below $2 billion, in 2023.

More companies are striking deals and seeking to raise capital through debt or equity offerings, fueling expectations of a broad recovery in dealmaking following a years-long dry spell.

In line with an industry-wide recovery, JPMorgan's investment banking fees surged 50% in the second quarter and sailed past Wall Street estimates for profits.

In a separate memo on Thursday, JPMorgan also announced the appointment of Ben Wilson as head of North America Energy, Power, Renewables & Mining (EPRM) M&A, succeeding Castaldo.

Wilson returns to the bank after spending the last several years as senior managing director at Guggenheim Securities, leading M&A transactions across the energy, industrials and consumer and retail sectors.

(Reporting by Manya Saini in Bengaluru and Nupur Anand in New York; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri)