With origins going back to 1848 New Orleans, the venerable House of Lazard has grown up alongside the investment banking industry. The firm offers financial advisory and asset management services from some 40 offices in the Americas, Asia, Australia, and Europe. Its investment banking arm provides advice on mergers and acquisitions, strategy, and restructuring and corporate finance services; specialties include the consumer, health care, energy, real estate, media, and telecommunications sectors. Lazard has some $155 billion in assets under management, most of it in international equities; it primarily serves institutional investors as well as governments and wealthy individuals.