Royal Bank of Canada

has hired long-serving Citigroup Inc. banker Rich Duffield to lead its equity-linked origination efforts.

The convertible bonds veteran will join RBC as head of equity-linked origination, having spent 17 years at Citigroup, according to an internal memo from Jim Wolfe, RBC’s head of global investment banking capital markets and Nitin Babbar, the bank’s global head of equity capital markets.

The banker, who began his career at Bear Stearns, is set to join RBC in November as a managing director, the memo shows. He will be based in New York.

“Elevating our equity-linked franchise is a key strategic priority for us given the importance of the product in providing holistic financing solutions to our clients and we are thrilled Rich will be joining us to lead the effort,” Wolfe and Babbar said.

An RBC spokesperson confirmed the contents of the memo.

Bloomberg.com