As some of its rivals try to cut expenses, Jefferies Financial Group (JEF.N.) said on Monday that it has opened an investment banking unit and capital markets division in Canada as part of an international expansion of its core Wall Street operations.
The New York-based bank said more than 40 people were joining across investment banking, equity research, and sales and trading.
In September, Brian Friedman, the president of Jefferies, announced the bank’s intention to enter Canada before the year ended.
Jefferies has increased its investment banking presence in Dubai and India and established offices in Israel and Brazil in recent months.
Several of its Wall Street counterparts have been concentrating on cost control, so this move stands in contrast to them.
Through its corporate, institutional, and government clients in Canada, the company will provide investment banking units and capital markets services, according to a statement released by Jefferies on Monday, December 4th. Over forty workers in the fields of investment banking, equity research, and sales and trading will work out of the Toronto office.
Founded in 1962, Jefferies started as a single office in Los Angeles focused on trading institutional equities. The company now has more than 40 offices across the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. It has expanded its services to include investment banking, equities, fixed income, asset management, and wealth management.