Report: Top Goldman Tech Banker Leaves for Coatue

Anthony Noto, the investment banker who led Twitter’s (NYSE:TWTR) IPO, is leaving Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) to join Coatue Management, a hedge fund that invests in public and pre-IPO technology companies.

At Goldman, Noto was co-head of the global telecommunications, media and technology investment banking group. He was previously CFO of the NFL and was a technology analyst at Goldman prior.

Noto posted his farewell to Goldman on Twitter. “I will miss the best TMT team in the world,” wrote Noto. He also used the hashtags #indispensable and #forevergrateful.

The move is considered to be a blow for Goldman; securing the lead underwriting position on Twitter’s $2 billion IPO was a boon for the investment bank.

In addition to Twitter, Noto recently worked on some other notable transactions. He advised on Microsoft’s (NASDAQ:MSFT) acquisition of Nokia and Goldman served as lead bookrunner for Apple’s (NASDAQ:AAPL) $12 billion debt financing.

“He’s very well respected,” says Neil Doshi, analyst at CRT Capital. “He was the top-ranked Internet analyst for many years” in his prior role at Goldman.

Noto is leaving Goldman just as it begins to work on what may be the largest technology IPO ever. The team will be co-managing Alibaba’s IPO, along with Citigroup (NYSE:C), Credit Suisse (NYSE:CS), Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB), JPMorgan (NYSE:JPM) and Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS).

Coatue has been investing in late-stage startups like photo messaging app Snapchat, cloud storage service Box, and ride-sharing app Lyft.

Goldman shares are down 10% year-to-date and the stock is currently trading around $160.