Argonaut, the specialist natural resources investment banking firm, is pleased to announce the appointment of Anthony Bayne as Executive Director, Corporate Finance.
Mr Bayne is an experienced and trusted M&A and strategic advisor. Over his near 25-year career, he has worked alongside and opposite many of the leading global mining and power & energy groups. His transaction experience covers EMEA and APAC. Until recently, Mr Bayne was a Managing Director and member of the senior leadership team at Rothschild & Co in South Africa. After relocating to Perth, he consulted to Alcoa Corporation.
With his global M&A experience, Mr Bayne is another key appointment in Argonaut’s “talent- led strategic growth initiative”. His appointment follows successful moves by Argonaut to secure ex-Canaccord Genuity Australia Executive Director Digby Gilmour as Co-Head of Institutional Sales as well as Hayden Bairstow (ex-Macquarie) and Benjamin Clifford (ex- Goldman Sachs), reinforcing the view that Argonaut is becoming the employer of choice for senior bankers in the natural resources space.
My Bayne will join Argonaut on 1 July 2025 as a senior member of the firm’s experienced Corporate Finance team. He will play a key role in continuing to drive Argonaut’s growth strategy and, working closely with the other senior executives, will focus on larger M&A transactions.
Commenting on Mr Bayne’s appointment, Argonaut’s Executive Chairman, Eddie Rigg, said:
“Argonaut is delighted to welcome Anthony as a senior member of our team as we continue to execute our talent-led strategic growth initiative. Argonaut is a firm that prides itself on its technical merits and sector leadership. We are pleased to have a highly respected M&A practitioner of Anthony’s calibre join our firm.
“Anthony’s appointment reaffirms Argonaut’s disciplined and strategic approach to growth, our focus on retaining and recruiting the best people and our firm’s position as a sought-after financial advisory, stockbroking & research and funds management business specialising in the natural resources sector.”
Argonaut Group Managing Director & Head of Corporate Finance, Greg Southee, said:
“It is an ideal time to super-charge our M&A capability as we enter the last quarter of what will be a record financial year for Argonaut. It has been a break-out year for Argonaut in M&A, including delivering the $2.5 billion cross-border Westgold-Karora merger.
“Anthony’s appointment will further strengthen Argonaut’s ability to deliver value to clients across the resources sector. The focus on larger M&A deals will complement our industry leading Research and ECM capabilities.”
Anthony Bayne added:
“Argonaut’s business model, deep sector knowledge and quality of people made the decision to join an easy one. It is a dynamic team where I can contribute to the growth of an institution that shares my ambition and values. I am excited about the opportunity and look forward to working closely with the team to support our clients through their most important decisions.”
Mr Bayne has provided M&A, capital raising, and strategic advisory services to clients for more than two decades, predominantly with Rothschild & Co and Merrill Lynch / Bank of America and based in Johannesburg and Sydney. He joins Argonaut following a distinguished career at Rothschild & Co, where he was Managing Director and played a key role in the firm’s South African business being the market leader in independent M&A and strategic advice. Recent clients advised include Anglo American, Engie, Mitsubishi, PETRONAS, Rio Tinto, TotalEnergies and Weir Group.
