Moelis & Co. co-founder and former chief operating officer Elizabeth Crain is leaving the firm at the end of the first quarter of 2024, Ken Moelis said in a memo to employees on Wednesday.
(Bloomberg) — Moelis & Co. co-founder and former chief operating officer Elizabeth Crain is leaving the firm at the end of the first quarter of 2024, Ken Moelis said in a memo to employees on Wednesday.
Crain, who has been at the firm for 16 years, will be pursuing other business interests.
“I’ve accomplished what I’ve came to Moelis to do,” Crain said in an interview. “I look at our leadership team and everybody is at slightly different points in their careers and bringing a unique skill set that will drive this firm into the future.”
Crain added that she is going to take some time before figuring out what to do next.
Ken Moelis said in a statement that Crain “has been a driving force behind our collective success, and the impact of her legacy will be evident well into the future.”
In March, the firm announced that Crain would become vice-chairman and step down as COO to be succeeded by Kate Pilcher Ciafone as of Oct. 1.
Crain once turned down an investment banking job from Ken Moelis while at UBS Group AG. She later instead accepted a role as his chief of staff at the Swiss firm and became a key member when the Moelis & Co. was founded in 2007.
“He said, ‘I don’t know what it will look like but we can figure out this place together. He gave me a unique opportunity,’ Crain said.
She was known for the company’s strategic planning and management of talent. In recent years, she’s been helping the firm pivot to meet more restructuring mandates as a booming economy began to slow down with Federal Reserve raising interest rates. She also helped oversee the bank’s initial public offering and global expansion.
Nurturing more women’s talent development and leadership will be key to getting more women into investment banking, she said.
She has served on the board of Finnish telecommunications company Nokia Oyj since April.
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