People Briefs

Murad Beg has joined Cleveland-based private equity firm Linsalata Capital Partners as a vice president. He previously was a partner with law firm Calfee, Halter & Griswold LLP, where he served as co-head of the M&A practice.

Thomas Bernhardt has joined PCG Asset Management as a senior vice president and head of research. He previously was a senior research analyst with CTC Consulting Inc., a subsidiary of Bank of America.

Moling Chen has joined Rothschild PE China as a Shanghai-based partner. He had spent the past six years with BioVeda China.

Craig Cooper has joined Saban Capital Group as a managing director and head of the firm’s new digital media investment practice. He previously was a venture partner with VantagePoint Venture Partners, and before that was a founding partner of Softbank Capital Technology Fund. He also was a co-founder of Boost Mobile.

Brendan Dyson has joined Lazard as a managing director in the firm’s corporate finance advisory group. He previously was with Piper Jaffray as a managing director and head of convertible securities.

First Reserve Corp. has promoted Jenny Zarrilli to managing director. She will retain her role as chief financial officer. Zarrilli joined First Reserve in 1998, after having been with Quadrant Management.

Louis Friedman has joined P. Schoenfeld Asset Management as president and managing partner of a new practice focused on private investments and long-term public holdings. He previously was with Bear Stearns, as vice chairman of investment banking and global chairman of M&A.

Goldman Sachs has promoted Tim Ingrassia to head of M&A in the Americas, according to a memo obtained by DealBook. He joined the firm in 1986, and most recently served as head of the firm’s consumer retail group.

James Howland has joined Morgan Stanley Private Equity as a managing director and operating partner. He previously was president of Dun & Bradstreet.

Reyaz Kassamali has joined Hilco Consumer Capital as a managing director based in Toronto. He previously was with Financo. Hilco is a private equity firm focused on mid-market consumer lifestyle companies.

Gerry Murphy has joined The Blackstone Group as a London-based managing director in the firm’s private equity group. He previously spent five years as CEO of Kingfisher, and previously served as CEO of Carlton Communications PLC, Exel PLC and Greencore Group PLC.

Scott Murray has joined the advisory board of WHI Capital Partners. He is a former managing director of Madison Capital Partners, and co-founder of Pfingsten Partners.

Akitoshi Nakamura has joined Sun Capital Partners as chairman and CEO of the firm’s Japan affiliate. He previously served as vice chairman and director of Nikko Principal Investments Japan Ltd.

The Riverside Company has promoted Anne Hayes, Kristin Newhall and Volker Schmidt to the position of partner. Hayes and Newhall work with the Riverside Capital Appreciation Fund out of New York, while Schmidt is part of the Riverside Europe Fund team and is based in Munich.

James Rubin and Daniel Selmonosky have joined BC Partners as senior partners in the firm’s New York office, effective May 1. They previously were founding partners with One Equity Partners. In related news, Raymond Svider and Justin Bateman will relocate from BC Partners’ London office to New York.

Olivier Sarkozy has joined The Carlyle Group as co-head and managing director of the firm’s global financial services group. He will be based in New York, and begins with Carlyle next month. Sarkozy previously was with UBS as joint global head of FIG Investment Banking, and is the half-brother of French President Nicholas Sarkozy.

Stephen Schwarzman, head of The Blackstone Group, has agreed to donate $100 million to the New York Public Library. It will be used to help transform the Central Library on 5th Ave. into a research and book-borrowing destination.

Istvan Szoke is joining CVC Capital Partners as a partner focused on building the firm’s business in Central and Eastern Europe, effective next month. CVC is currently raising its fifth fund with a target capitalization of €11 billion. Szoke had spent the past nine years as a partner with Advent International.

Christopher Varelas is leaving Citigroup, where he serves as co-global head of tech media and telecom I-banking. His new job will be as a founding partner of Bigwood Capital, a new private equity firm formed by former Flextronics CEO Michael Marks, who currently serves as a senior advisor to KKR.

Vestar Capital Partners has promoted Peter Calamari to principal and Brendan Spillane to executive vice president. Calamari joined Vestar in 1999, and previously was a vice president in the firm’s consumer group. Spillane joined as a vice president in 2006, and will continue to serve as corporate CFO.

Anthony Wedo has agreed to serve as a consultant to TowerBrook Capital Partners, with a focus on opportunities in the restaurant sector. Wedo is a former PepsiCo executive who subsequently founded Mid-Atlantic Restaurant Systems. He has spent the past four years as CEO of Mainline Management and Capital Advisors LLC.

Craig White has joined Zealous ATS as a managing director in the firm’s Private Funds Services Group, where he will manage secondary transfers of private funds. White previously was a senior vice president with NYPPEX.

Compiled by Dan Primack