Lazard Asset Management has hired Steven Blitz as head of its global fixed income business in New York.

Blitz joins from Offitbank, the wealth management subsidiary of Wachovia, where he has worked for 13 years, most recently as chief strategist responsible for the company's $4bn (€4bn) core and core-plus mandates. Before joining Offitbank, Blitz, who also held the post of chief economist, worked as a derivative products strategist and technical bond analyst at Salomon Brothers for seven years.