Senior rainmaker who advised Harrods sale
KEN Costa’s contacts book will be sorely missed at Lazard, which he is leaving at the end of this week for unknown reasons.
During his three and a half years at the firm he is best known for pulling off the £1.5bn sale of Harrods to the Qatari royal family, a deal in which he advised Mohammed Al Fayed.
He moved to Lazard from UBS in October 2007, where he was vice-chairman. While at UBS, he advised the Barclay brothers on their acquisition of the Daily Telegraph and aided insurer Allianz in its purchase of Dresdner Bank.
He began his dealmaking career at SG Warburg in 1976, moving to UBS when it acquired the bank.
He is also a well-known Christian conservative and has written a book on the role of faith in work called God at Work: Living Every Day With a Purpose.
He also chairs Alpha International, which runs courses to introduce people to Christianity.
Last night, South African born Costa was due to speak on the Robin Hood tax at St Paul’s Cathedral, where he was a trustee during its redevelopment.