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He will work alongside Jefferies’ head of investment banking for Italy, Mauro Premazzi, and is the latest recruit to bolster Jefferies’ European operation after it increased the size of its Spanish dealmaking team to around 15 in recent months. Before joining Credit Suisse, Donzelli worked at Lehman Brothers.

A Jefferies spokesperson declined to comment.

READ Six Credit Suisse dealmakers jump to Jefferies amid Archegos fallout

Credit Suisse has struggled to stem an exodus of senior dealmakers as it has battled successive crises including a $5.5bn hit from the collapse of family office Archegos Capital in March 2021. Around 70 senior dealmakers have departed the bank over that time, but it has been hiring to replace and build out in key areas including technology and healthcare.

In a radical overhaul, unveiled in November, Credit Suisse announced plans to hive off its investment banking business into a separate unit called CS First Boston. Dealmakers are being offered a so-called partnership pay structure under the new business, which it said sits between a bulge bracket investment bank and a boutique.

Despite this, key dealmakers have still departed for rivals. In London, its head of global banking, Jens Welter, has left to join Citigroup as co-head of banking, capital markets and advisory for Europe, the Middle East and Africa in December.

Credit Suisse has named Paolo Celesia and Michele Pangrazzi as co-heads of Italy investment banking and capital markets, according to a separate memo seen by Financial News. Celesia was previously head of southern Europe equity capital markets at the bank and Pangrazzi will move from his current role as co-head of Emea M&A industrials, the memo said.

Credit Suisse is cutting around 2,700 jobs before the end of 2022, and 9,000 over the next three years. Around 900 front-office investment bank jobs are on the line, and half of those will come from Europe, Financial News reported.

Jefferies has tapped a number of senior Credit Suisse dealmakers since its troubles began. Last year, it poached a team of dealmakers from the Swiss bank in the US including Alejandro Przygoda, who led its financial institutions group globally. In Europe, it hired six bankers to build out its FIG franchise including Armando Rubio-Alvarez, who headed the business in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

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