LONDON, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Perella Weinberg has recruited two new partners from collapsed Lehman Brothers to build an advisory business in a new office on the West Coast of the United States, the boutique investment bank said on Wednesday.
Paul Inouye and John Varughese will be based in San Francisco Bay and will advise clients in the technology sector, working closely with partners in New York and London.
Perella Weinberg also has an office in Austin, Texas.
Small banks make their living by advising corporate clients on deals and strategy, but they avoid the finance and investment roles that create conflicts of interests common at big investment banks and thrown into spotlight by the credit crunch.
Boutiques have an opportunity to expand now that only two major investment banks, Morgan Stanley MS.N and Goldman Sachs GS.N, have survived the credit crisis independently, while others have been bought or have failed.
In their previous jobs at Lehman Brothers, which filed for bankruptcy in September, Inouye was a managing director in the Internet practice, while Varughese held the same position in technology mergers and acquisitions. (Reporting by Olesya Dmitracova; Editing by David Holmes)
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