DUBAI (REUTERS) - HSBC Holdings has named Mr Anshul Gupta as its head of mergers and acquisitions business for the Middle East and North Africa (Mena), replacing Mr Omar Mehanna, who is taking a new role at the British bank's Saudi Arabian affiliate.

Mr Gupta, who joined HSBC in 2005, is currently a managing director in the bank's corporate sector group and will remain responsible for that coverage along with his new role, the bank said in an internal memorandum seen by Reuters.

In his new role, Mr Gupta will report to Mr Paul Skelton, regional head of global banking and Mr Alain Renaud, the bank's global head of M&A and co-head for its corporate finance business globally.

Mr Mehanna is relocating to Riyadh as chief strategy officer for Saudi British Bank, a lender 40 per cent owned by HSBC. He has advised on several deals in the region, including the takeover by France Telecom of Egypt's Mobinil last year.

The appointments take effect on June 1 this year, the memo stated.

M&A activity in the region is showing signs of revival after the global financial crisis hit investor sentiment and increased valuation disagreements between buyers and sellers.

Transactions with Middle Eastern targets reached US$20 billion (S$24.7 billion) last year, double the activity seen in 2011, according to Thomson Reuters data. Fees from advising clients totaled YS$157.9 million, a 23 per cent increase.