Lazard Hires Former US Rep. as Senior Advisor

Patrick McHenry is leaving the House Chamber and heading for the board room.

Advisory and asset management firm Lazard hired the former US Representative as a senior advisor last week. The Republican congressman from North Carolina served for two decades, briefly acted as the speaker pro tempore of the House, and most recently chaired the House Financial Services Committee. He joins the New York-based firm as the country enters a new and exciting (and occasionally scary) time as the markets respond to tariffs, deregulation, and economic uncertainty.

“Patrick’s deep policy expertise and distinguished tenure in Washington will be invaluable to our clients,” Lazard CEO Peter Orszag said in a statement. The company declined to comment further. Orszag himself previously worked in Washington as the director of the Office of Management and Budget and director of the Congressional Budget Office under the Obama administration. 

Career Politicians No More 

This isn’t McHenry’s only gig in the finance industry. In fact, he’s quite popular these days. The multibillion dollar venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz hired him as a senior advisor at the end of February, McHenry announced in an X post. He’s also serving as a senior advisor for the buy-now, pay-later platform equipifi.

However, there are firms looking for non-McHenry, Washington insiders to help steer financial decisions during these volatile and internationally tense times. Centerview Partners took on Reince Priebus, who served as chief of staff in the first Trump administration, as well as Rahm Emanual, who was most recently the US ambassador to Japan under Biden, as senior advisors. 

Going Active: The new hire comes at an interesting time for Lazard. The company finally jumped into the active ETF fray earlier this month, launching its first three products in the US. The trio of active ETFs includes:

• Lazard Equity Megatrends ETF (THMZ) aims to capture long-term returns through diversified themes and megatrends around the world.
• Lazard Japanese Equity ETF (JPY) seeks to capitalize on growth opportunities and market inefficiencies in Japanese stocks.
• Lazard Next Gen Technologies ETF (TEKY) exposes investors to high growth stocks tied to companies that work in artificial intelligence, automation, and tech innovation.

The launch represents “a significant step forward” in making Lazard’s investment strategies accessible to more investors, Rob Forsyth, global head of ETFs at Lazard, said in a statement.