The Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) today announced the appointment of Leon J. Bijou as managing director and associate general counsel. Bijou will serve as part of SIFMA’s capital markets team, working primarily with the municipal division on legal, regulatory and market practice initiatives. He will report to Leslie Norwood, managing director and associate general counsel, who is SIFMA’s municipal division staff advisor.
“We are extremely pleased that Leon is joining SIFMA,” said Randy Snook, senior managing director and executive vice president at SIFMA. “Given Leon’s years of legal experience working on municipal bond issues and various economic development projects, I am confident that SIFMA’s members will benefit greatly from this addition to our fixed income staff.”
“Leon’s background will be an asset to SIFMA as we enter the new year with a focus on issues in the municipal bond market such as liquidity, transparency, taxes and financing of state and local infrastructure,” said Ms. Norwood.
Bijou joins SIFMA from Goldman, Sachs & Co. where he was vice president and associate general counsel, serving as the general counsel for the municipal bond department. There, he was involved with all aspects of deal origination, remarketings, tenders, and structured products as well as regulatory compliance matters. Bijou also has experience serving as bond counsel, underwriters’ counsel, trustees’ counsel and special product counsel while at the law firm of Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP.
Bijou earned a J.D. from Brooklyn Law School. He was also executive articles editor for the Brooklyn Journal of International Law.