BrokerDealers Instant Message Battle v. Bloomberg Chapter 2: Perhaps Perzo

Posted on August 4, 2014 by admin

As an instant update to the July 31 BrokerDealer.com blog post profiling Blabber, the instant message (aka IM) application created by Goldman Sachs as a possible industry replacement for the ubiquitous Bloomberg LP chat service that connects Wall Street traders and salesman to their respective buyside customers, we thank Silicon Valley Business Journal contributor Jason McCormick for his coverage below.

Perzo Inc., an instant-messaging service based in Palo Alto, is in negotiations for a possible sale to a group led by Goldman Sachs Group Inc., according to the Wall Street Journal.

The group of financial firms, including JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Bank of America Corp., is seeking an alternative to Bloomberg LP’s messaging service, which has become a dominant way for Wall Street traders to communicate.

The Journal reported that the group is mulling an investment between $40 and $50 million in the company, created by communications executive David Gurle. The company already has financial backing from Merus Capital, which was founded by former Google Inc. executive Sean Dempsey.

The talks come following a push by Goldman to ban its traders from using some instant-messaging services offered by Bloomberg and others, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Bloomberg is facing pressure after reports surfaced that journalists in its employ used the service to check on the activities of its users.

http://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/news/2014/08/04/perzo-an-instant-messaging-startup-may-tilt-at.html

Best-In-Class Minority BrokerDealer Profile: Mischler Financial Group

Posted on August 1, 2014August 1, 2014 by admin

Brokerdealer.com blog is pleased to profile Mischler Financial Group, the financial industry’s oldest and largest minority brokerdealer/investment bank owned and operated by Service-Disabled military veterans. Now celebrating its 20th anniversary, the firm’s founder and Chairman Walt Mischler is a West Point graduate who served 2 tours of duty in Vietnam prior to being injured in the line of duty. CEO Dean Chamberlain, also a West Point grad, and also certified as a disabled veteran consequent to injuries he sustained during a helicopter training mission, is widely-recognized across the debt capital markets space, much in part due to his prior role as Head of Fixed Income/Americas for global investment bank Nomura Securities.

Mischler is the securities industry’s only federally-certified BD and maintains a significant footprint across both primary debt and equities capital markets where the firm serves as a underwriter, manager, co-manager and/or selling group member for corporate issuers bringing new debt or equities to the investment marketplace. The firm is also one of few in the industry that operates a 24/6 “high touch + high tech” trading desk that facilitates agency-only, direct market access and best execution for institutional clients transacting in US domestic markets and 100+ international equities markets. The firm’s website is located at www.mischlerfinancial.com

BrokerDealer Fantex Completes IPO for NFL Star EJ Manuel

Posted on August 1, 2014 by admin

Buffalo Bills Star E.J.Manuel

Sports-centric brokerdealer Fantex announced it raised enough capital to close 523,700 shares of Buffalo Bills quarterback EJ Manuel and shares of his convertible tracking stock. The IPO required help from the company which stepped up to buy 250,000 shares, or 48 percent of its own shares of the total offered amount.

Trading under the Fantex ticker EJMLL, the stock began trading last week at Fantex.com. This is the second successful athlete IPO that Fantex has been able to close. CEO Buck French voiced his excitement on the success of the program and future plans to build E.J. Manuel’s NFL Brand.

Fantex, a sports marketing stock exchange, allows traders to capture a share of contracted athletes’ career earnings potential. On its exchange, Fantex offered 523,700 shares of stock at $10 per share on Manuel. In return, Fantex will pay Manuel almost $5 million up front to receive 10% of his future earnings tied to his “brand.” These future earnings include any NFL contracts, marketing endorsements, post-career broadcasting contracts, and any other checks he’ll cash through his NFL “brand.”

A full exploration of the firm’s operations, business model and potential risks to investors is the subject of a feature story in the print debut of The Alpha Pages