Moelis says Sumitomo relationship going “extremely well”

In January this year, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation SMBC paid $93 million for a 5% stake in Moelis Company, an advisory firm. The deal came with a strategic alliance agreement under which Moelis would provide global advice for Japanese clients of SMBC and its securities arm SMBC Nikko. In return, SMBC and SMBC Nikko would provide Moelis access to their Japanese clients.

Nearly five months on and the deal has led to a rapid escalation of two-way business, according to Rick Leaman, managing partner of Moelis, although there are no deals yet that can be specifically said to have been borne from the alliance. In particular, it would appear...