Appointments: Catalyst Corporate Finance; Melrose Industries

CATALYST Corporate Finance has appointed Hamish Shah as a new direct entry partner to work across its Midlands and London offices.

Mr Shah has 20 years of M&A experience having worked at Cable & Wireless, Merrill Lynch and Capstan Capital Partners and the firm believes the combination of his experience of working within industry, bulge bracket investment banking and at a mid-market advisory business will be “a real asset”.

Andy Currie, managing partner at Catalyst, said: “He will bring additional expertise in the TMT sector to our team and I am confident that Hamish’s skill set will provide even greater reach and options to our client base. This latest hire is a reinforcement of our belief in our business model as we continue to expand and gain market share.”

Mr Shah, who was Head of European Mid-Cap TMT Investment Banking at Merrill Lynch prior to his time at Capstan, will work closely with business owners and management teams in the Media and Telecoms sector in his new role, as well as supporting financial sponsors..

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MELROSE Industries will add David Lis as a non-executive director after tomorrow’s AGM, replacing the outgoing Perry Crosthwaite who has been on the board for 11 years.

Mr Lis retired from his role as chief investment officer of Aviva Investors in March after a career in fund management, and is also a director of The Investor Forum, which aims to promote the value of long-term investment by facilitating better engagement between UK public companies and their shareholders.

Christopher Miller, chairman of Melrose, said: “Perry’s advice and extensive financial experience have been invaluable to Melrose; we wish him every success in the future.

“We are delighted to welcome David to the Board and are confident that his long-standing experience addressing investors’ needs will be of significant benefit to Melrose as we begin the next chapter of our business. We look forward to an excellent contribution from David over the coming years.”

Mr Crosthwaite will be replaced as the senior non-executive director by John Grant, who will continue to chair the Audit Committee.