Over the years, Lazard Fréres & Co. grew and metamorphosed into a business dealing with banking and foreign exchange. In 1852, they opened an office in Paris and London followed in 1870. It was in 1876 when the company began to focus primarily on financial services.

In the year 2000, the three “houses” of Lazard (Paris, New York, and London) were unified under Lazard LLC. By 2005, the Initial Public Offering (IPO) for the company was completed and Lazard began publicly trading on the New York Stock Exchange in May of that year.

Lazard’s service centers on excellence, integrity, intellectual rigor, and creativity. It follows a client-centered perspective. Employees and executives who constantly train in order to excel in their fields of endeavor deliver its exceptional brand of service. Lazard Asset Management also values its shareholders by assuring them that the company is committed to investing in progressive success.

The company’s service in the financial field is highly regarded. It is responsible for some of the most significant mergers and acquisitions over the last 160 years. As a testament to this, Businessweek recognizes the firm as the Granddaddy of M&A.

Lazard is also recognized in the area of corporate restructuring on a global scale. In fact, the company has had 250 restructurings in a span of 10 years (since 1999).

In the field of asset management, Lazard is committed to extend only the best investment solutions for its clients. Its clients range from financial intermediaries, to institutional clients, to private individuals. The company’s total assets under management as of June 2008 were valued at $134.1 billion. Most of these assets are managed for banks, institutions, mutual fund sponsors, and individual clients.