JP Morgan CFO Jumps to PE Group –

NEW YORK – In another sign of J.P. Morgan & Co.’s growing commitment to the private equity arena, the investment bank’s chief financial officer, John Mayer, has moved over to run Morgan Capital Corp., the firm’s private equity arm.

Morgan Capital manages a portfolio of more than $1 billion and earlier this year began fund raising for the first of what will be a family of private equity funds. The firm intends to commit a substantial portion of the equity to each of the funds, which will range in size from $500 million to $1 billion, while bringing in outside limited partners .

Brian Watson, the former head of Morgan Capital, will be returning to Australia to manage Morgan Capital’s Asia-Pacific activities. Peter Hancock, chairman of the firm’s risk management and capital committees, will take on the title of CFO.