Eric Cantor Joins Wall Street Investment Bank

Enlarge this image SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images

Former House Majority Leader Eric Cantor this week begins working at the boutique investment bank Moelis & Co.

Cantor will serve as vice chairman and managing director, and will also be elected to the firm's board of directors.

Cantor, 51, and firm founder Ken Moelis announced the decision in a joint interview Monday.

A statement on the Moelis website said, "Cantor will provide strategic counsel to the firm's corporate and institutional clients on key issues. He will play a leading role in client development and advise clients on strategic matters."

Cantor does not have a Wall Street background but was considered a friend of Wall Street while he served in Congress.

Cantor, who will continue to live in Virginia, will open a new office for the firm in Washington, D.C., in addition to having an office at the company's headquarters in New York City, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The Virginia Republican was unexpectedly defeated in a June primary by college professor David Brat, and stepped down as majority leader shortly after that.

The loss by the No. 2 House Republican shocked many political analysts and the congressman himself.

With the defeat, Cantor became the most prominent victim of the Tea Party.

Cantor is a native of Richmond, Va., and worked for his family's real estate development firm before being elected to Virginia's House of Delegates.

He was first elected to Congress in 2000.