NEW YORK: Travis Machen is joining Bank of Nova Scotia from Morgan Stanley to lead its global banking and markets business.

Machen, who is set to start on May 6, will replace Jake Lawrence, who left the bank in March to become chief financial officer of Power Corp of Canada, according to a statement on Monday, confirming an earlier Bloomberg News report.

Lawrence had been with the Toronto-based lender for more than two decades and was considered a candidate for chief executive officer (CEO) before the firm tapped Scott Thomson for the role.

Machen’s appointment is the latest development in a string of executive changes at the bank, which has also replaced the managers leading its international, Canadian retail banking and wealth management divisions since Thomson became CEO in early 2023.

Machen, who will run Scotiabank’s investment bank and capital markets division, was most recently managing director and head of banks, diversified and financial infrastructure at Morgan Stanley, according to the statement.

He was previously a managing director and group head of financial institutions corporate and commercial banking at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

He’s also a member of the Financial Sector Advisory Council for the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas and will be based in New York and Toronto in his new role.

“Throughout his career in corporate, investment and commercial banking, Travis has earned a reputation for being a client-focused relationship banker,” Thomson said in the statement.

“I am confident in his ability to build our business across our key markets, and to execute on our strategy for our clients, our bank and our shareholders.”

 - Bloomberg