Dry cargo shipbroker Lightship Chartering has hired 10 brokers from rival shops to build its presence in panamaxes and round out its core business in handysizes and supramaxes.
Seven of the new hires are panamax brokers and most will staff Lightship’s Genoa office, which is being reopened after two years.
Lightship chief executive Sune Fladberg told TradeWinds the company had hired the recruits from two or three of its competitors and hoped to make additional recruitments.
“We are proud to secure these individuals who are among the best in their area and have always been in high demand,” he said.
“The fact that Lightship is able to attract these names is a testament to the strength of the company’s collective.
“Nonetheless, we would like to accredit this deal to our partner, Gianluca Garufi.”
TradeWinds understands the new hires include long-time Banchero brokers Michele Pescetto, Luca Del Celo, Oscar Pesto and Filippo Gabutto.
Fladberg said Lightship’s annual headcount has been growing by about 15% each year since 2020. Last year, growth was 20%.
“With this expansion, we are well on track to reach our goal of being a minimum of 250 brokers by 2029,” he said.
“This addition is on top of 11 new students in the Lightship Academy who have joined the company recently and will lead Lightship in the future.”
Fladberg said Lightship will announce “further significant developments” in other segments before the end of the year.
Lightship closed its Genoa office in mid-2022 after seven brokers quit to join rival SSY.
The group, headquartered in Geneva, currently has about 30 panamax brokers, who are outnumbered by its handysize and supramax staff.
It added a new panamax desk to its Athens office in May last year, which is headed by Dimitris Kompolias.
Thirteen brokers joined Lightship’s office in Singapore last year.
“Within just two years, our newest office in Miami has expanded to include eight brokers, making it the largest in Miami’s dry bulk sector and ranking among the top five brokers in the US,” Lightship’s Denmark entity said in its 2023 financial report.
“Year-to-date 2024 has witnessed a great improvement in both fixtures and market conditions,” the firm added.
“The expansion and investments over the recent years are expected to have a significant impact on our results for 2025 and beyond.”
Lightship is owned by its founder and chairman Morten Have.
In January, Lightship bought a 3% stake in the share capital of London-listed shipbroking group Braemar.
Applications for the Lightship Academy’s 2024 cohort were three times higher than the previous year, according to the company.
