Jefferies & Company

Infobox_Company
company_name = Jefferies & Company
company_
company_type = Public nyse|JEF | foundation = 1962
location =
key_people = Richard B. Handler, Chairman & CEO
num_employees = 2,254 (2006)
industry = Investment services
products = Financial Services
Investment Banking

revenue = profit $2.71 billion USD (20067
net_income = profit $144 million USD (2007)
homepage = [http://www.jefferies.com www.jefferies.com]

Jefferies & Company, Inc., the principal operating subsidiary of Jefferies Group, Inc. (NYSE|JEF) is a full-service global investment bank and institutional securities firm focused on growth companies and their investors. Headquartered in New York, with nearly 30 offices around the world, Jefferies provides clients with capital markets and financial advisory services, institutional brokerage, securities research and asset management. Jefferies has offices in leading financial centers including New York, Short Hills, Boston, Los Angeles, San Francisco, London, Zürich, Paris, Tokyo, Shanghai, Singapore, and Dubai with recent office openings in Frankfurt and New Delhi. Jefferies provides a broad range of investment banking services in a number of global growth sectors including aerospace and defense, cleantech, consumer, energy, healthcare, industrial and technology. The firm is also a leader in the sale of global equities, convertible and high yield bonds, providing a variety of leading-edge solutions in sales, trading, analysis and investment management for institutional investors and high net worth individuals.

Background

Boyd L. Jefferies founded Jefferies & Company in 1962 as an equity trading firm with one employee and a booth on the floor of the Pacific Exchange. In a period of fixed commissions, Jefferies pioneered split commissions, leading to a rapid growth in clients. Moreover, Jefferies focused primarily on the third market—direct trades between large institutional buyers and sellers. However, as a result of numerous violations of securities laws, a federal court entered a permanent injunction against Jefferies in 1987, prohibiting him from engaging in any securities dealing in any form. On July 7, 1989, Jefferies was sentenced to five years probation and fined $250,000.

At a time when 75% of market trades were for retail customers, Jefferies focused on emerging markets for large block trades. By 1966, Jefferies was the 7th largest firm in size and trading on the New York Stock Exchange. Over the next 20 years, the firm continued to build its reputation for client service and attracted top talent as well as an enviable client list. The firm was an innovator in 24-hour trading, international trading and derivatives trading. In 1983 Jefferies went public and by 1984, it was one of the top ten publicly traded brokerages in terms of profitability. In 1990, Jefferies started its investment banking business, hiring 60 bankers from Drexel Burnham Lambert, most notably the chairman and CEO, Richard B. Handler.

In the last fifteen years, Jefferies revenues increased from $300 million in 1993 to $540 million in 1996 to close to $2 billion in 2006, with a market capitalization of over $4 billion (04/07/06, fully diluted).

Notable Acquisitions

* Putnam Lovell (financial services advisory firm) - July 2007
* Helix (private equity fund placement group) - May 2005
* Randall & Dewey (energy-focused advisory firm) - February 2005
* Broadview International (technology-focused advisory firm) - December 2003
* Quarterdeck Investment Partners (aerospace and defense advisory firm) - December 2002

Management

* Richard B. Handler, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer
* Brian P. Friedman, Chairman, Executive Committee (JG) Chairman of the Executive Committee
* David Weaver, President, Jefferies International Ltd.
* Andrew R. Whittaker, Vice Chairman
* Peregrine Broadbent, Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President
* Chris M. Kanoff, Executive Vice President and Co-Head Investment Banking
* Lloyd H. Feller, General Counsel and Executive Vice President

External links

* [http://www.jefferies.com Jefferies & Company] - Official Website

ources

* [http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/27/business/27wall.html?ex=1296018000&en=f9c37c6399664abc&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss New York Times article]
* [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m5072/is_n9_v14/ai_12093257 Los Angeles Business Journal article]
* [http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/Jefferies-Group-Inc-Company-History.html Background source]
* [http://www.jailhurwitz.com/textfiles/drexelhurwitzamstar.txt Background source]