Lazard's Joseph Cassanelli joins Blackstone Tac Opps

Blackstone has appointed Joseph Cassanelli, former co-head of Lazard’s US financial institutions group, as senior managing director of its tactical opportunities (Tac Opps) strategy.

He will be based in New York and serve as an investment professional within the hybrid capital solutions platform, focused on the financial services sector.

Cassanelli spent more than two decades at Lazard, acting as a strategic adviser to a broad range of global financial institutions.

He has advised on more than half a trillion dollars of transactions, including a number of large and most complex mergers, acquisitions, and strategic restructuring transactions in financial services. This included Blackstone’s IPO and C-Corp conversion, as well as deals for Tac Opps and insurance-related transactions for Blackstone Credit & Insurance.

“Joe’s deep expertise and relationships in the financial services sector make him an ideal addition to Tac Opps – as we continue to seek to deliver differentiated performance for our investors,” said Chris James, global head of Tac Opps.

“We believe our scale and flexible capital are particularly well suited for today’s market environment, and look forward to working with Joe to continue serving as a trusted capital solutions provider to businesses in financial services and beyond.”
Cassanelli added: “I am thrilled to join Blackstone Tactical Opportunities, which has built a well-deserved reputation for creativity and innovation as a pioneer in hybrid capital with exceptional investment professionals. I look forward to providing bespoke capital solutions in partnership with outstanding management teams and companies across the financial services sector.”

Blackstone launched its tactical opportunities platform in 2012 to invest in private investment opportunities outside of traditional private equity and private credit.

It now has $34bn (£25bn) of assets under management.