Boutique Bank Mergers Accelerating

Matlin Patterson's pet investment banking project Broadpoint announced it was acquiring another boutique investment bank, Gleacher Partners, for $67 million, consisting of $20 million in cash and $47 million in stock, and will henceforth be known as Broadpoint Gleacher. Gleacher which had long languished in the periphery of even smaller advisory shops, must be happy to cash out its equity ahead of the coming banking extinction wave. Broadpoint has developed over the past 2 years as a melange of bankers and traders poached off from assorted companies, with the majority of its personnel coming from banks Jefferies and Bear Stearns. Broadpoint's CEO, Lee Fensterstock, who for years used to work at Jefferies and became a close friend of David Matlin who runs Matlin Patterson, a hedge fund known to have a special place in its heart (and its building at 520 Madison) for the mid-market focused bank that recently received a Madoff subpoena, became appointed CEO of Broadpoint in 2007 after Matlin decided to take a majority stake in the company. Another close friend of David Matlin's, and also former Jefferies managing director, Tim O'Connor is currently head of Investment Banking/Restructuring after being plucked with his entire team in a lawsuit-laden poaching from even smaller boutique bank Imperial Capital. Due to the implosions of the big banks and the vast preponderance of unemployed bankers, Broadpoint may just be able to assemble a motley crew of cost-effective advisors and traders, case in point being CDS trading legend Rick Crescenzo who joined the company after his prior employer, Bear Stearns didn't quite make the turn. Sphere: Related Content

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