Lazard's Antonio Weiss set to join US Treasury Antonio Weiss, a senior Lazard banker, has been nominated undersecretary for domestic finance to the US Treasury by President Barack Obama. Mr Weiss, 48, is currently the global head of investment banking for Lazard, a position he has held since 2009. His new role would make him America's top domestic finance official, responsible for US policy on banking, debt finance, capital markets and regulation, the White House confirmed in a statement. His appointment is subject to confirmation by the Senate. In an internal memo to staff sent on Wednesday night, Lazard said that Mr Weiss would "transition his responsibilities at Lazard over the next few weeks." Alex Stern, its chief operating officer, "has agreed to expand his role to ensure continuity and provide leadership for our global financial advisory business," the memo said. Lazard has been involved in some of the recent so-called "tax inversion" deals, like Burger King's $11.4bn acquisition of Canadian coffee chain Tim Hortons, which have proved controversial with the Obama administration. In the deals companies attempt to slash their tax bills by buying an overseas competitor in a lower tax domicile and shifting their headquarters to that jurisdiction. Mr Weiss joined Lazard in New York in 1994 and became a partner at the end of 1998. From 2001 to 2009, he was based in Paris, serving as a vice-chairman of European investment banking and subsequently global head of mergers and acquisitions. In 2009, he returned to New York to become global head of investment banking. Mr Weiss is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the economic advisory council of the Center for American Progress. He is publisher of The Paris Review, a literary magazine. Mr Weiss received a BA from Yale College and an MBA from Harvard Business School. He would replace Mary Miller who left the US Treasury department in September, since when Matthew Rutherford, the assistant secretary for financial markets, has been acting undersecretary. In the memo to staff Kenneth Jacobs, chairman and chief executive of Lazard, praised Mr Weiss's decision to join the Obama administration.