Credit Suisse Loses 20 in L.A. Office

A crew of about 20 investment bankers in the Los Angeles office of Credit Suisse First Boston are leaving to join their former leader at UBS Warburg, sources said.

The bankers, including two top-ranking managing directors, are following Ken Moelis, one of Southern California’s top investment bankers, who last month said he will depart Credit Suisse for UBS.

The latest wave of defections comes about a month after Credit Suisse completed its purchase of Donaldson Lufkin & Jenrette Securities, where Moelis, 42, had headed the Los Angeles office since 1990.

Many of those leaving were hired by Moelis or worked with him.

Bankers leaving for UBS include Warren Woo, a managing director who worked with Moelis when both were bankers at Drexel Burnham Lambert in the 1980s; Jeff Raich, a managing director; and bankers Bill Baumgart and Todd Bomberg. Credit Suisse has faced key defections on both coasts since it completed its purchase of DLJ.

UBS Warburg has not been a major force in investment banking in the United States, but it recently purchased brokerage PaineWebber Group to boost its U.S. presence.