ChurchillTerry —The Dallas-based business advisory firm has added Larry Calton to the professional services team. Calton is the founder and manager of Frisco-based business incubator North Texas Enterprise Center (NTEC). He ran the NTEC for the past 10 years.
Dresner Partners — The Chicago investment bank has hired Brian Graves as managing director. Graves has more than 20 years of experience working with senior executives, board members, business owners and private equity groups. Graves' experience includes leadership and advisory roles with Ernst & Young, Credit Suisse Group AG (NYSE: CS) , Mesirow Financial and Motorola Inc. Dresner also hired Alan Mustacchi as managing director and head of consumer products and specialty retail investment banking. A 20-year M&A veteran, Mustacchi joins Dresner from Navigant Capital Advisors LLC where he was a managing director and head of consumer products and specialty retail.
K&L Gates LLP — The law firm has added Virginia Tam as a partner, along with Sacha Cheong as counsel, both in the firm’s Hong Kong office. Tam will join K&L’s corporate and transactional practice and Cheong will be a part of the firm’s in the litigation and dispute resolution practice. Arriving at K&L Gates from White & Case LLP, Tam’s focus includes cross-border corporate transactions involving publicly-traded companies and private equity financing. Cheong is a disputes lawyer joining K&L from Clifford Chance. His focus is mainly on litigation before the Hong Kong courts. Also, Soheui Choe joins the firm’s Seoul office as counsel in the intellectual property practice. Choe most recently worked for Samsung Electronics and was previously in private practice in the U.S.
KKR & Co. LP — (NYSE: KKR) The New York private equity firm has named former CIA director David Petraeus (pictured) to be chairman of a new unit, KKR Global Institute. Petraeus, a four-star Army General whose career spans more than 37 years, is expected to aid in the due diligence process of cross-border deals and guide the unit when it comes to examining the political and economic ramifications on each transaction, especially in emerging markets. Before retiring in August 2011, Petraeus commanded all U.S. Army coalitions in Iraq. In June 2011, he was confirmed by the U.S. Senate as CIA director. He stepped down from the position in November due to revelations of an extramarital affair.
LaSalle Investment Management — The Chicago real estate investment management firm named Tiziana Galassini chief operating officer and head of product development in the client capital group. Galassini joins from Morgan Stanley, which she joined in July 1998. There, she spent 15 years in its investment banking division. Galassini was most recently an executive director and an operations officer for Europe, Middle East and Africa real estate banking. She will be based in the firm’s London office.
Mizuho Financial Group — The Japanese financial services firm announced three senior hires to its investment banking unit Mizuho Securities USA, based in New York. Mark Orsi and Wes Dalton are both joining the San Francisco office, while Robert Leggat heads to Boston. Orsi, formerly of Lazard Capital Markets, joins as an executive director, while Dalton, who comes from Macquarie Securities, will be a director. Leggat will also be an executive director.
Reed Smith LLP — The Pittsburgh law firm brought in James Mercadante as a partner in its corporate and securities group. Mercadante specializes in capital raising and transactional activities for private equity firms, hedge funds and private companies. Previously, he was a partner at Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP. Before that, he was a partner at Baker & Hostetler LLP as well as at Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP. Mercadante is based in the firm's New York office.
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