Sterne Agee grows fixed-income line with addition of KKS, four hires

By Susanna Moon

Chicago, Dec. 8 - Sterne Agee said it expanded its fixed-income credit business with the acquisition of KKS Securities of Mill Valley, Calif., and the hiring of Greg O'Loughlin, Mark Steele, Brad Cook and Ryan Esposto.

KKS Securities specialized in convertible bond sales, trading and credit research/strategy.

O'Loughlin joins the firm as a managing director and head of convertible bond trading. Before joining Sterne Agee, he was managing director and group head of convertible bond sales and trading at Thomas Weisel Partners. He has a Bachelor of Arts in economics from Providence College.

Steele joins the group as a managing director and head of convertible bond sales. He was a founder and managing partner of KKS Securities. He also worked as a managing director at Thomas Weisel Partners for eight years, focusing on mid-cap growth companies, and was also a managing director and senior convertible bond salesman at Robertson Stephens after starting his career at Montgomery Securities. Steele graduated from Golden Gate University with a Bachelor of Arts in business administration.

Cook is a senior vice president and head of convertible bond strategies. He was previously at Thomas Weisel Partners as a managing director of convertible bond research. Cook started his career as a credit research analyst at Oaktree Capital Management, working in the London high-yield group. He has a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Calgary, Alta.

Esposto is a vice president in convertible bond sales. Before this, he was with KKS Securities, where he worked in sales and research, including distressed debt. His experience also includes equity research at Prudential Securities focused on the technology sector. He also brings industry experience from trading physical semiconductors in the spot market in Europe. He has a Bachelor of Science in business from the University of the Pacific.

Sterne Agee is a privately owned investment banking firm based in Birmingham, Ala.

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