NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--MF Global Holdings Ltd. (NYSE: MF), a broker-dealer providing trading and hedging solutions, has made substantive progress in expanding its capital markets and institutional sales teams.
In the last several months, MF Global has made significant sales and trading hires, advancing the firm’s efforts to establish an integrated sales and distribution process and deliver a more complete client offering of capital markets products and services.
“We’re investing in the future of this business,” said Jon S. Corzine, chairman and chief executive officer, MF Global. “We’re hiring experienced talent and reallocating resources to areas of opportunity that will help advance the firm’s transformation into a leading commodities and capital markets investment bank.”
Acquiring Top Talent in Areas of Opportunity
MF Global, recently designated a primary dealer by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, has the broad geographic presence and product depth to offer clients expanded exposure to the world’s developed and emerging markets.
“We have identified our strongest opportunities in markets where there are compelling competitive gaps, growing economies and expanding markets, and businesses that represent substantial potential to differentiate our offering to meet the demands of clients,” said Jon Bass, global head of Institutional Sales. “Accordingly, we are actively upgrading our processes, people and global footprint to capture that opportunity.”
Recent key hires to support this expansion include:
Commodities
- Shay Caherly has joined as head of commodities derivatives trading, based in New York. In this new role, Mr. Caherly will provide market-making services and liquidity across energy, agriculture and soft commodities markets. He joins MF Global from ED&F Man Holdings, where he was head of commodity derivatives.
- Christopher Wright, Charles Daly and Christopher Chiarilli have also joined the commodities derivatives trading desk as commodity derivatives traders. They are based in New York and report to Mr. Caherly. Previously, Mr. Wright was a derivatives trader at Susquehanna International Group; Mr. Daly was an energy derivative trader at Kottke Associates; and Mr. Chiarilli was an energy and fixed income trader at First New York Securities.
- Edward Boxshall has joined the commodities group as an energy futures broker, based in London. Mr. Boxshall previously worked as an oil futures broker-dealer at Black Gold Energy LLC.
- Gareth Clark has joined the commodities group as a metals broker, based in London. Mr. Clark previously worked as a metals trader at Newedge Group.
Mortgage-Backed Securities
- Evan Malik and Phil Hermann have joined as co-heads of the mortgage- and asset-backed securities (ABS) sales team. Most recently, they held senior positions at Braver Stern, where they were founding partners of the firm’s mortgage business.
- Richard Onkey has joined the mortgage-backed securities (MBS) sales team, based in New York. Mr. Onkey previously served as head of the ABS syndicate desks at UBS and Morgan Stanley, respectively.
Credit
- David Prinn and Christopher LeVine have joined the credit sales team, based in New York. Mr. Prinn joins MF Global from RBC Capital Markets, where he was director of credit sales. Mr. LeVine previously served as managing director of credit sales at Chapdelaine Credit Partners.
- Caesar Silvestro has also joined the credit sales team, based in New York, focusing on research across the credit space in high-yield and distressed debt. Mr. Silvestro was most recently executive vice president and senior high-yield and distressed debt analyst at Chapdelaine Credit Partners.
- Fred Allen has joined the credit sales team and is based in Chicago. In this new role, he will be responsible for overseeing credit sales in the Midwest region. Mr. Allen was most recently senior vice president of investment-grade credit sales for Jeffries, Inc. in Chicago, and brings more than 12 years of experience and strong client relationships.
- Nadia Elhosh has joined the European high-yield and distressed debt sales team, based in London. Previously, Ms. Elhosh worked at Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and at Bear Stearns as a credit analyst.
- Raphael Ramos has joined the institutional fixed income credit sales team as head of French regional coverage, based in London, with an emphasis on building out the firm’s relationships and business with French investors. Mr. Ramos previously served as deputy director of France credit, rates and structured products sales at Unicredit Markets & Investments.
Equity Derivatives
- Joseph Gahtan has joined MF Global to manage equity derivatives sales, based in New York. Mr. Gahtan previously served as a managing director at JPMorgan, where he worked for 12 years.
- Peter Wells has joined as head of equity trading for the firm’s Asia Pacific region, based in Hong Kong. Previously, Mr. Wells was global head of Japanese Equities at Nikko Citigroup Ltd.
Emerging Markets
- Michael Muller has joined the fixed income emerging markets team to manage emerging markets sales, based in New York. Mr. Muller joins MF Global from Gleacher & Company, where he served as director of emerging market and high-yield sales.
Integrating Sales Processes and Infrastructure
MF Global has also realigned its sales and distribution structure, establishing a framework to coordinate and leverage relationships and opportunities with clients across products and geographies.
To that end, MF Global has created the Client Management Group (CMG) to institutionalize the firm’s most important client relationships. Through this framework, MF Global will more efficiently deliver its broad-based portfolio of products and services to clients around the globe.
The group will be co-lead by Mike Curran who recently joined the firm in New York from UBS. Mr. Curran will work alongside Darrell McConnell in Chicago and Nigel McGee in London, as well as the firm’s business leaders, sales and trading teams to collaborate on key client relationships, strategy and value proposition.
“We are actively integrating our sales efforts across regions and products so that our institutional clients recognize that all MF Global -- regardless of their salesperson’s location or product focus -- can deliver quality market access, research and liquidity,” said Mr. Bass.
Consolidating in Europe to London and Geneva
As part of the firm’s continued efforts to capitalize on market opportunities that represent the greatest potential for growth, MF Global is reallocating resources globally, and in Europe in particular. The firm is now in the end stages of consolidating its operations in Europe, including Paris and Zurich, into its London and Geneva offices.
“By consolidating our resources in London and Geneva we can more efficiently service our clients and attract, train and develop talent,” said Richard Moore, MF Global’s managing director of Europe. “We are excited by the prospects in the region and remain committed to develop the European business.”
About MF Global
MF Global (NYSE: MF) is one of the world's leading brokers of commodities and listed derivatives. MF Global delivers trading and hedging solutions as a broker-dealer across all major markets for futures and options, commodities, fixed income, equities and foreign exchange. The firm is one of 20 primary dealers authorized to trade U.S. government securities with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. The firm provides access to more than 70 exchanges around the world and is a leader by volume on many of the largest derivatives exchanges. MF Global helps clients discover and capitalize on market opportunities by providing actionable insight, market expertise and deep liquidity. For more information, please visit www.mfglobal.com.
Forward-Looking Statement
SAFE HARBOR STATEMENT UNDER THE PRIVATE SECURITIES LITIGATION REFORM ACT OF 1995: Forward-looking statements in this press release, including statements relating to the Company’s future revenues and earnings, plans, strategies, objectives, expectations and intentions, are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Investors are cautioned that such forward-looking statements are inherently subject to risks and uncertainties, many of which cannot be predicted with accuracy, and some of which might not be anticipated. We caution you not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. We refer you to the Company’s latest Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and any amendments thereto, for a description of the risks and uncertainties the Company faces. This press release includes certain non-GAAP financial measures, as defined under SEC rules. A reconciliation of these measures is included in the financial information later in this release, which is available on the Company’s website at www.mfglobal.com.