National Public Finance Guarantee made a second key hire in as many months, announcing that Thomas Metzold will be starting at the municipal bond insurer on Aug. 3 after retiring from Eaton Vance.
Metzold, 56, will be a managing director and will hold a new role, head of capital markets at National. He will be responsible for leading the firm's secondary markets business and for coordinating outreach to buy- and sell-side municipal bond trading desks. The firm last month hired Andrew Nakahata from Citi as managing director and head of National's Western Region.
Metzold sees a great opportunity and wants to be a part of National's growth. National, the muni-only arm of bond insurer MBIA Inc., told The Bond Buyer in May that it is continuing to make progress towards normal operations. National wrapped $38 million in par amount of primary new issuance in the first quarter and wrote or made commitments to write $241 million since then.
National began writing new business in the third quarter of 2014.
"I hope to be part of a re-emergence of National in a leading bond insurer and return it to the level it was during the pre-financial crisis," Metzold said in an interview with The Bond Buyer. "I have the opportunity to start with a moldable business that I can have impact on. National needs to and wants to write more business and I can be part of that movement. NPFG has tremendous upside and financial strength and I am looking forward to being a part of it."
Expect National to have more hires in the future, as the Metzold and Nakahata hires are just the beginning.
"National is starting fresh at the ground floor and they are being able to create a team," Metzold said. "There will be other hires so we can be that much more competitive in the bond insurance arena. We want to grow the business and we see a potential ratings upgrade in the future so we can be on the same playing field."
Although bond insurance has seen a re-emergence since December of 2014, it is a shadow of what it was during its peak pre-crisis, with the biggest hurdle being the recognition of the value proposition that municipal bond insurance has, as it creates value and saves money for the issuer.
"With interest rates as low as they have been, it hasn't been a major part of the market place," Metzold said. "The market itself is still licking its wounds so to speak from the financial crisis. National is a muni only insurer and this is an opportunity to go back to the original business model. I think there is a chance for National and others to re-emerge as dominant participants in the muni bond market and flex its muscles in terms of its ability to show value."
Metzold said the market had become complacent before Detroit's bankruptcy proved the value of muni bond insurance and Puerto Rico's debt struggle underscored the point.
"We're pleased to welcome Tom to National," Tom Weyl, managing director and head of new business development for National, said in a press release. "His extensive experience in the municipal bond market and deep understanding of the needs of traders, portfolio managers and credit analysts will be invaluable as we look to expand our secondary markets business and reestablish National's leadership position in the bond insurance industry."
Metzold will be leaving Eaton Vance after 28 years. He started in 1987 as a high-yield municipal bond analyst covering health care and hospital sectors and became a portfolio manager in 1991.
"It is with a heavy and sad heart that I leave and this was not a decision I made lightly," he said. "I am going to miss the people and the dynamic team that exists there at Eaton Vance."
