Greenhill & Co global chief executive Scott Bok has expressed an unwavering commitment to the Australian advisory market, shrugging off concerns about a slow start to 2016. 
In a recent visit to Australia, Mr Bok said the New York-headquartered firm had no plans to reduce its presence or exit the local market, despite speculation around the issue. 
"We are 110 per cent committed to this market," he told Fairfax Media of the firm's Sydney and Melbourne offices. "It really is preposterous to think we would close down here."  
Mr Bok noted that Greenhill was looking to add another managing director in Australia potentially to cover the natural resources sector.
His comments follow a turbulent period for Greenhill in Australia, after its involvement alongside Citigroup in Slater & Gordon's acquisition of the professional services unit of troubled British firm Quindell.
Greenhill's Australian entity, which may not represent all local revenue due to cross-border deals, also swung to a $4.9 million loss in the 12 months ended   December 31, accounts lodged with the corporate regulator showed. 
Mr Bok said Greenhill's 15 offices had withstood "ebbs and flows" in merger and acquisition activity worldwide, and he remained upbeat about local and global activity in 2016. 
"There are still a lot of larger transactions out there and some of which are completing from last year," Mr Bok added. "I'm quite optimistic about our firm ... The big banks are really struggling."
Greenhill is one of several independent advisory firms, which, unlike bulge bracket banks, doesn't sell equity and debt products. 
Mr Bok said some of the opportunity lay with independent advisory firms continuing to win market share from their bigger rivals. 
"There are a lot of firms pulling back," he said, noting Macquarie Capital had cut its headcount in the US and Nomura was paring its presence in the US and Europe.  
Barclays has also retreated from investment banking, including exiting Australia.
Globally, M&A activity has had a lacklustre start to the year with announced transactions amounting to $US1.1 trillion so far in 2016, according to Dealogic. That is a six-year low. In Australia, year-to-date volumes are at their lowest since 2009. For announced deals, Greenhill ranks well outside the top 10 in the Australian league tables.
The firm is advising the federal government on the partial privatisation of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission registry business. It was also among advisers that tended to Dexus Property Group on its unsuccessful tilt for Investa Office Fund. 
With the release of its global earnings, Greenhill flagged a notable write-down of the Australian subsidiary that related to the goodwill in its 2010 acquisition of Caliburn. At the time it was reported that Greenhill paid $US181 million for Caliburn, with the transaction conducted in all stock when the company's shares were close to record levels. Earn-outs were not all met and some of the stock was repurchased at lower levels, the company said.  
The carrying value in Greenhill's local accounts is now just north of $50 million. 
This doesn't faze Mr Bok. He notes the biggest risk to global and local M&A activity centres on deals being delayed because of elections and other events such as a vote on Brexit. 
On the topic of Donald Trump's US presidential campaign, Mr Bok said: "It would be very unfortunate if Trump was elected but I don't think it would have a meaningful impact on our business at all." 
That is in contrast to an   April survey by dataroom group Intralinks that suggested dealmakers thought Mr Trump, if elected, would be more detrimental to M&A activity than other candidates.