Barclays Wealth, a global wealth management institution, has apponited Harry Martin as director to its international private banking team in the Middle East.

HSBC Bank Middle East has appointed Simon Johnson as regional head of commercial banking. In this role, Johnson will oversee all commercial banking business across the Middle East region.

Baker & McKenzie announces that Tom Thraya and James Reed, both corporate partners, have relocated to the firm’s Abu Dhabi office from Chicago and London respectively.

Mark Bailey has been appointed head of EMEA for Bank of America Merrill Lynch's global equity financing and services platform.

The National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD) has appointed Nigel Carrington as divisional manager of operations.

DLA Piper has appointed Abdul Aziz Al-Yaqout to the role of office managing partner for Kuwait. Al-Yaqout, a Kuwaiti national, will relocate to Kuwait from DLA Piper’s Cologne office.

Dubai-based Abraaj Capital, the largest private equity company in the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia (MENASA), has appointed Ashok Aram as a managing director after a 15-year career at Deutsche Bank.

Citi has appointed Bill Mills and Alberto Verme as CEOs and new regional leaders in the EMEA region. Mills will continue to be responsible for Citi’s business in Western Europe and Africa and Verme for the business in Central and Eastern Europe and the Middle East.

Lukas Ruflin has been appointed deputy CEO of EFG International, returning from EFG Financial Products which he co-founded in 2007. In his new role, he will focus on further development and execution of the firm’s strategy, working closely with CEO Lawrence Howell and his colleagues in the executive committee.

Japanese bank Nomura has hired Selim Toker from UBS as head of its global finance solutions team for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, according to an internal memo.

Exotix, a frontier market broker and investment banking boutique, has recruited Vikas Nath as its new chief executive to strengthen its senior management team, following three years of rapid growth.
 

Barclays Capital has hired 450 bankers to strengthen its equity business in Europe and Asia since the autumn, as it aims to become a top three player in Europe by 2011. It is 18th in European ECM league tables at present.