LEVERAGED BUYOUTS DROVE MUCH OF THE mergers and acquisitions business in recent years. As the private equity boom reached its peak during the past 12 months, fully one quarter of all M&A fees collected by investment banks could be traced to LBOs, according to New York research firm Dealogic. But the buyout binge looks to be coming to an end -- the victim of lax lending standards and risk controls. Which of the top merger advisers have been most dependent on buyout deals for their revenues? And which, by extension, appear best and worst positioned for the year to come? A look at the data shows Goldman, Sachs & Co. comfortably in first place and among the less dependent of the top ten on LBOs, while some key rivals -- including No. 2 Morgan Stanley and fourth-place Credit Suisse -- are in more precarious positions. M&A specialist Lazard is in ninth place overall but with just 19 percent of revenues from LBOs, appears to be in good shape going forward.
