Two Partners Switch Indianapolis Firms
David A. Travelstead and Roderick H. Morgan, who had been law partners in the Indianapolis firm of Bose McKinney & Evans, switched their addresses from Pennsylvania Street to Ohio Street last week when they moved to Stewart & Irwin.
They join Stewart & Irwin partner Stephen W. Sutherlin. Morgan and Travelstead's experience includes work for the city of Indianapolis, multifamily housing deals, the Indiana Health Facility Financing Authority, and school issues.
"It's a great opportunity," Morgan said when asked why he had made the move.
Bose McKinney, meanwhile, brought in Robert D. Swhier Jr. of Dann Pecar Newman & Kleinman in Indianapolis. Karl R. Sturbaum is the other bond attorney at Bose McKinney.
Native Nations Seeks Municipal Bankers
They've got the desire, they've got the fixed-income sales and trading desks -- but now five-month-old Native Nations Securities needs the municipal bankers to make its dream of bringing more tax-exempt financing to Indian Country come true.
"There's a crying need for this type of service," said Paul Savage, chief executive officer of the Jersey City, N.J., operation, which claims to be the nation's only Native American-owned investment bank. "The community is underserved ... We have a mandate, but we're waiting for a team."
Native Nations acquired Freeman Securities Inc. in January. The combined operation employs about 50 people, who handle fixed-income sales and trading, equities, asset management, clearing and custody, and research, Savage said.
The firm wants to hire about four municipal bankers. Savage said the firm has had difficulty finding anyone with enough experience, considering the complexity of underwriting bond issues for Native American tribes.
"There are a lot of moving parts," Savage said, noting that issues surrounding the sovereignty of a particular nation can affect how a bond deal is structured.
A Fitch report this month predicted that American Indian tribal governments likely will increase their issuance of tax-exempt debt in the future as their infrastructure needs increase and they develop greater sophistication in accessing the capital markets.
Jeffrey Lamb, president of the Native American Finance Officers Association, believes $500 million of bonds likely will be issued by Native American tribes in the next year.
Native Nations is chaired by Valerie Red-Horse. Red-Horse is also an actress and producer, and served as the model for the Mattel "Pocahontas" doll, according to a Web site for one of her films.
Dooney Joins Team At Market Axess
Thomas Dooney, once head of public finance at First Union Corp. before it cut back its municipal department, is now product manager for municipals at the online bond platform Market Axess, where he is partnered with Ted Palatucci, head of the transaction desk.
Market Axess went live last summer with a platform targeting large-block trades of a variety of fixed-income securities between and among broker-dealers and institutional investors. Dooney has been with Market Axess since the beginning of the year.
