Grant Thornton grows Transaction Advisory Services practice in New York

John Cristiano joins as managing director to support practice expansion

NEW YORK, April 2, 2014 — John N. Cristiano, 42, has joined Grant Thornton LLP as a managing director in the firm’s Transaction Advisory Services practice, based in New York.

Cristiano has nearly 20 years of experience in financial and operational due diligence, enterprise valuation, quality of earnings analyses, financial modeling and forecasting, financial reporting and internal controls review. He has built detailed valuation models for many companies, with a focus on underlying free cash flow, and has evaluated and advised on capital restructurings, mergers and acquisitions, merger integrations, stock offerings and industry and benchmarking analyses.
“John is a highly skilled senior financial executive who brings to Grant Thornton a unique combination of experience providing financial and accounting advisory services as well as serving as an equity analyst and accountant,” said Frank Kurre, managing partner of Grant Thornton’s Metro New York Cluster, which includes the firm’s offices in midtown and lower Manhattan, Long Island, Albany and Edison, N.J.

Cristiano’s arrival comes on the heels of Mike Sullivan joining the firm’s Transaction Advisory Services practice in New York last month. Sullivan has substantial experience working closely with private equity investors and operators, often acting as the liaison between target management and the investment team, including other business advisors.

“As we demonstrated last month with Mike’s addition, John’s arrival highlights the latest milestone in the continued growth of the firm’s Transaction Advisory Services practice in the Metro New York Cluster,” said Carlos Ferreira, leader of the Transaction Advisory Services practice for Grant Thornton’s Metro New York Cluster.

Prior to joining Grant Thornton, Cristiano served as a managing director with FTI Consulting, Inc., where he was part of the Corporate Finance and Restructuring practice and a member of the Transaction Advisory Services Solutions group. Previously, he was a senior analyst in the equity research department of UBS Investment Bank, where he focused on the media and information services industries.

A certified public accountant in New York, Cristiano received a master’s degree in business administration with a concentration in finance from Columbia Business School and a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Lehigh University.

About Grant Thornton LLP
Founded in Chicago in 1924, Grant Thornton LLP (Grant Thornton) is the U.S. member firm of Grant Thornton International Ltd, one of the world’s leading organizations of independent audit, tax and advisory firms. In the United States, Grant Thornton has revenues in excess of $1.3 billion and operates 55 offices with more than 500 partners and 6,000 employees. Grant Thornton works with a broad range of dynamic publicly and privately held companies, government agencies, financial institutions, and civic and religious organizations.

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SOURCE: Grant Thornton LLP