KBW Expands Into Asia

KBW, Inc. (NYSE: KBW), a full-service investment bank that specializes in the financial services sector, today announced the implementation of its expansion into Asia, giving the firm a leading global footprint in financial services.

Headquartered in Hong Kong with an additional office in Tokyo, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Asia Limited (KBW Asia) is fully integrated with the firm’s other business units in the United States and Europe, offering sales, trading and research of Asian financial companies to clients around the world. It will also offer capital markets services to corporate clients in the Asia-Pacific region.

"An increasing number of our institutional clients are taking a global approach to their portfolios,” noted Thomas Michaud, KBW Asia Chairman and KBW Vice Chairman and Chief Operating Officer. "With our presence in the United States, Europe and now Asia, KBW’s global research platform will cover nearly 600 financial companies in 33 countries, making us the largest specialist franchise in the world dedicated to this sector. Also, with traders and an institutional sales operation located across three continents, KBW will have a trading desk open for business virtually 24 hours per day. Our value proposition to clients has never been stronger.”

KBW has launched research coverage on 51 publicly-traded financial services companies throughout Asia, with plans to launch coverage on several dozen more by this summer. In addition to individual stock coverage, the Asian research team also plans to publish thematic regional reports providing in-depth analysis of current topics impacting the sector.

"Some of the largest holders of Asian equities are located outside the Pacific Rim,” noted Vasco Moreno, Global Business Coordinator for KBW Asia and CEO of KBW Limited in the United Kingdom. "Asian financials are an increasingly important driver of the global financial services economy. Based on market capitalization, six of the world’s top 20 banks are in Asia. Financials also account for nearly 60 percent of the market weight of the Hang Seng Index.”

KBW has assembled a team of experienced professionals to staff the Asian effort. In all, 20 people have joined the firm’s Hong Kong and Tokyo offices. Senior hires include:

• David Threadgold is the Head of Research in Asia, heads KBW’s Tokyo office and provides coverage of Japanese banks and insurers. Prior to joining KBW, David was Co-Head of Asian Equities at Fox-Pitt Kelton and Head of Research at ING Securities (Japan). David has more than 24 years of relevant experience and has been named a top equity research analyst by AsiaMoney and a top stock picker by Starmine.
• Warren Blight is KBW’s lead analyst covering China/Hong Kong Banks. He has spent the last 15 years as a research analyst based in Hong Kong. He comes to KBW from Fox-Pitt, Kelton where he covered the same sector. Previously, Warren was Head of Asian Financials Research at ABN Amro and Head of Asian Banking Research at ING Barings.
• Brian Hunsaker is responsible for coverage of banks in Korea, Singapore and India. He was previously Head of Non-Japanese Banks Research at Fox-Pitt, Kelton. Earlier in his career, Brian served as Head of Asian Banks Research at Nomura Securities and Head of Korea Research at Dresdner Kleinwort Benson.
• Sam Hilton joins KBW as the equity research analyst responsible for coverage of South East Asian & Taiwanese banks and Asian exchanges. Sam worked at Fox-Pitt, Kelton for three years before joining KBW and prior to that he was a consultant at Monitor Group based in Hong Kong.
• Jun Osihi joins KBW to cover Japanese regional banks and brokers. He comes to KBW from Fox-Pitt, Kelton where he was an equity research analyst for the past three years. Prior to that, Jun was a financial analyst at FactSet Research Systems in Tokyo and Los Angeles.
• Andre Carey is the Head of Equity Trading for KBW Asia. Andre has two decades buy and sell-side experience, a majority of which have been spent in Hong Kong. Andre joined KBW from Fox-Pitt, Kelton where he was Head of Sales Trading Asia, and before that he worked at Fimat Asia, Cazenove, SG Securities, and Peregrine Brokerage.
• Lye Keong Tho has joined the firm as a Senior Salesperson. He has more than 15 years of experience in institutional sales and maintains strong relationships with key portfolio managers across Asia. Lye comes to KBW from Fox-Pitt, Kelton. Earlier in his career, he held positions at SG Securities and Peregrine Securities in both Hong Kong and New York.
• Natasha Tariq also joins KBW as a Senior Salesperson. She has more than a decade of experience in Asian equities covering institutional and hedge fund clients in Europe and Singapore. Most recently, Natasha worked at UBS Singapore. Prior to that, she held sales positions at UBS London and Fox-Pitt, Kelton.
• Zachry Rosenberg, the Head of Capital Markets Asia, is primarily responsible for the origination and execution of equity capital market deals and other investment banking transactions throughout Asia-Pacific. He has over 15 years of experience in corporate finance. Prior to joining KBW, Zac worked at Fox-Pitt, Kelton where he was Head of Asian Investment Banking and was an Executive Director with CIBC World Markets in Hong Kong.

"This is a very exciting time for KBW employees, clients and shareholders worldwide,” remarked John Duffy, KBW Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "We are very optimistic about the opportunities that exist for our franchise in Asia and view this as another milestone in our firm’s rich history.”

About KBW

KBW operates in the U.S., Europe and Asia through its broker dealer subsidiaries, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, Inc., Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Limited and Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Asia Limited. It also offers asset management services through KBW Asset Management, Inc. Founded in 1962, the firm is widely recognized as a leading authority in the banking, insurance, brokerage, asset management, mortgage banking and specialty finance sectors. The firm has established industry-leading positions in the areas of research, corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions as well as sales and trading for financial services companies.

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