US investment bank Houlihan Lokey has hired Prabha Sip Bhandari as chief legal officer, succeeding general counsel Christopher Crain who is stepping down after more than two decades in the role.
Bhandari joins from HR and payroll tech business Paychex, where she was CLO and chief ethics officer. At Houlihan Lokey, she will oversee all legal and compliance activities for the organisation globally and serve as corporate secretary.
New York-based Houlihan Lokey provides investment banking services to companies, financial sponsors and governments.
Scott Adelson, CEO of Houlihan Lokey, said: “[Bhandari] is a seasoned executive who brings deep experience in M&A, corporate governance and legal and regulatory matters at a number of world-class financial institutions and public companies, making her the ideal choice to lead our legal and compliance functions as we continue to grow our business globally.”
Bhandari spent just over two years at Paychex, having previously been deputy GC at insurance giant AIG. She also had a spell as principal deputy GC at Freddie Mac following 13 years at Deutsche Bank in New York, latterly as GC for Deutsche Bank Securities.
Her first in-house role was as associate GC at Viacom after working in private practice at Davis Polk & Wardwell. She started her legal career clerking in the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.
Bhandari said: “I have long admired Houlihan Lokey’s collaborative culture and exceptional market reputation, which is grounded in client dedication, integrity and intellectual rigour.”
She added: “I look forward to working closely with the leadership team and our talented banking, legal and compliance professionals worldwide to support our strategic priorities and navigate an increasingly complex global landscape.”
Crain, meanwhile, is moving to a corporate senior adviser role, where he will support the transition and also provide advice to senior management on non-legal matters.
Adelson said: “I want to extend our deepest gratitude to Christopher for his outstanding commitment and more than two decades of service to the firm. His leadership and counsel have been invaluable, and we are very pleased that he will continue to contribute his expertise as a senior adviser.”
In other recent in-house financial services appointments, earlier this month Chicago-based derivatives marketplace CME Group promoted John Marchese to GC, replacing Jonathan Marcus in the role.
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