Former Commerce Capital Markets senior vice president David Thompson has launched afinancial advisory firm, Phoenix Advisors LLC, to provide services to issuers along theNortheast corridor, Thompson said yesterday.
The 30-year New Jersey-based public finance veteran has so far hired three formermembers of Commerce Capital's Cherry Hill, N.J. office. Thompson said that Bordentown,N.J.-based Phoenix is in discussions with another senior municipal banker to leadoperations in Virginia and the metro Washington, D.C., area.
Thompson - the company's chief executive - said he decided to start Phoenix the dayafter Commerce Bancorp Inc. announced on July 13 that it would exit the negotiatedmunicipal bond underwriting business.
The new company started working on transactions Aug.1, while Thompson was completingdeals at Commerce. He left the firm on Aug. 31, one month after starting Phoenix.
He said that in conversations with Vince Stafford, head of Commerce Capital Markets,both agreed there were a number of clients with whom the firm had "continuingengagements." With Stafford's support, Thompson said that he transferred the firm's NewJersey financial advisory clients to Phoenix's account.
There was "no compensation on our part to Commerce" for the clients, Thompson said. Hesaid that the transfer was in both firms' interest and that Commerce "saw it as a way tocleanly exit the business."
Phoenix last month also hired from Commerce Melissa W. Zinni, Sherry L. Kling, andRonald E. Novak as vice presidents.
The firm will seek advisory work with local governments, school districts, state, countyand municipal authorities, and special taxing districts. It will offer advice,consultation and management services in debt structuring, restructuring, and bond sales.While the firm will focus initially on New Jersey, it will seek to land clients in theNortheast from Boston to the eastern part of Virginia, Thompson said.
"We have put together a quality, experienced, hardworking team to deliver the very bestin municipal and public sector financial advisory services," Thompson said in a preparedstatement. He added that the firm has relationships with clients such as South BrunswickTownship, Rancocas Regional School District, Pennsauken School District, Ventnor City,and Old Bridge Township.
Thompson previously served as president of the former Cypress Securities Inc., whichCommerce Bank purchased in 1995, he said.
Zinni worked with Thompson for five years at Commerce. She has experience in new money,refunding, and pooled government loan issues as well as in investment portfolioconstruction and cash flow management.
Kling worked three years at Commerce with Thompson and has experience in new issues,restructuring, and refunding.
Novak worked for seven years at Commerce, where he was responsible for developing newbusiness in the school sector. He has worked for 30 years in school financialmanagement, has served in financial management roles, including assistant superintendentwith the Princeton Regional, Monroe Township, and Matawan Aberdeen Regional SchoolDistricts.
Commerce announced it was exiting the business two weeks after two of its executiveswere indicted on federal fraud charges stemming from a probe into government corruptionin Philadelphia. Commerce Capital Markets will now focus on growing its retail and assetmanagement business.
