Raymond James Financial (NYSE-RJF) has appointed Christian Bullitt as managing director in its Financial Sponsors Group to work with and support private equity firms in the New York, Connecticut, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., areas.

“Christian is a highly skilled and experienced private equity professional,” said Jim Bunn, senior managing director and head of Investment Banking at Raymond James. “A lot of capital has been raised by private equity firms over the past several years, driving an active M&A market. With Christian’s unique perspective and particular skill-set as a successful business development officer in the financial sponsor space, we are very optimistic about the potential for him to help us continue to grow our business with private equity firms.”

Bullitt is based in New York and joins Raymond James from LLR Partners in Philadelphia, where he was managing director of business development for the $2 billion growth PE firm with an investment emphasis on software, health care and tech-enabled service companies. He previously worked for a buy-side investment and consulting firm as well as private investment entities in the Philadelphia market. He is a graduate of Hartford, Connecticut’s Trinity College.

The addition of Bullitt to the Financial Sponsors Group will aid private equity firms in building relationships with the team of Raymond James investment bankers in the nine industry sectors covered by the firm.

“We’re seeing an increasing number of private equity firms and other financial investors seeking to invest in a range of mid-market companies,” added David Clark, managing director and head of Raymond James Investment Banking Financial Sponsors Group, “therefore competition and valuations have remained relatively high. Raymond James’ engagement with these firms has increased each year, and Christian’s support in these active markets and his unique background will lead to more opportunities for Raymond James from this important investor base.”

“I’m very excited to join Raymond James,” stated Bullitt. “I’ve known the Financial Sponsors team for many years and have always considered Raymond James to be an outstanding investment banking platform in a very competitive market. I’m looking forward to helping the firm continue to grow its presence within the financial sponsor community. Having spent my career on the ‘other side of the table,’ it’s going to be fun to bring my perspective to helping the firm’s clients grow and exit their portfolio companies.”

About Raymond James Investment Banking

Raymond James Investment Banking offers highly regarded capital formation and financial advisory services. Since 2013, Raymond James has participated in raising $300 billion in capital for its corporate clients and completed more than 500 advisory assignments, including more than 400 M&A buy-side or sell-side advisory assignments.

About Raymond James Financial, Inc.

Raymond James Financial, Inc. (NYSE: RJF) is a leading diversified financial services company providing private client group, capital markets, asset management, banking and other services to individuals, corporations and municipalities. The company has approximately 7,500 financial advisors in 3,000 locations throughout the United States, Canada and overseas. Total client assets are $727 billion. Public since 1983, the firm is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol RJF. Additional information is available at www.raymondjames.com.