M&A INDUSTRY ICON AWARD HONOREE
LLOYD GREIF
CEO
Greif & Co.
Lloyd Greif founded Greif & Co. in 1992 following a successful, decade-long investment banking career as vice chairman of Sutro & Co. Incorporated, the oldest investment banking firm in the West, where he was head of the investment banking division and a member of the five-person Management Committee that ran the firm.  In 1997, he founded the Lloyd Greif Center for Entrepreneurial Studies at USC’s Marshall School of Business. The Greif Center is consistently ranked among the top five entrepreneurial studies centers in the world.  Greif and his firm, Greif & Co., have earned a reputation for having a hands-on, founder-focused approach to investment banking, particularly in advising entrepreneurs and privately held middle-market companies during critical, often emotionally and financially complex, transactions. While 2024 was relatively quiet in terms of completed public deals, Greif & Co.’s historic and recent transactions (including those in 2025) reveal consistent themes on how the firm adds value and overcome challenges. Greif & Co. is very much operational, closing billion-dollar take-privates with PE sponsors and advising growth-stage businesses. Greif himself is not just a dealmaker – he is an influential voice in sector trends, especially in media/M&A. His firm’s niche remains advising entrepreneurial, mid-market companies across diverse industries, from food to film. Many clients are first-time sellers unfamiliar with legal, financial and tax implications. Greif’s approach is to offer “concierge-level” guidance, coordinating attorneys, accountants, estate planners and family advisors. As a result, he and his team are able to keep clients protected and informed while avoiding costly post-closing issues.
