CEO OF EQUILEND TO RETIRE FROM FINANCIAL SERVICES
NEW YORK, April 15, 2005 - Dirk Pruis, President and CEO of EquiLend, the global securities lending trading and operations platform has announced his retirement from the financial services industry and will step down as the firm's chief in August of 2005. Mr. Pruis leaves EquiLend, and Wall Street, to pursue the long-time goal of giving back to his alma mater, Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan where he will serve as Vice President of Advancement. EquiLend's Board of Directors has begun an industry search for a successor.
During Mr. Pruis's post, EquiLend has been recognized as an industry leader and remains one of the few successful financial services consortiums still in operation, run by 10 marquee financial services firms, and another to imminently be announced. Since inception, over $2.1 trillion has been executed over the platform, and EquiLend has expanded its operation into Europe, increased platform volumes by nearly 400%, extended the platform to support global Fixed Income, and has been an active contributor to industry-led initiatives, such as the much anticipated Agency Lender Disclosure project.
Pruis was appointed the position in April of 2002 after actively participating in the formation and development of EquiLend during the company's incubation period. Pruis joined the company after spending nine years at Goldman Sachs.
During his tenure at Goldman Sachs, Pruis oversaw multiple technology initiatives, served as the controller of the Tokyo office, co-manager of the Partners' Capital Group, director of finance and administration in the Mexico City office, and manager of US regulatory reporting. Pruis was instrumental in EquiLend's formation and drove industry initiatives that benefited the global securities industry.
“Dirk stepped into the role of CEO during an important time in financial services,” Mike Vardas , Chair of the Board of EquiLend states. “His commitment to his work, his dedication to EquiLend’s mission, and his ability to lead through consensus has been critical to EquiLend’s success today. He has developed a strong, capable and talented management team that shares a common vision of success. "Although we are sad to see him leave, the Board is confident that EquiLend’s future is bright and will continue to evolve and establish its leading presence in the industry."
"This has been a life-long goal of mine," Dirk Pruis comments. "Being able to build and nurture something to a point that I can confidently leave in order to pursue my own personal goals brings me tremendous satisfaction. If it weren't for EquiLend's consistent success, its people, the board and its clients, this could not have been possible."
EquiLend is currently in the process of selecting a successor. “We want to see EquiLend continue to deliver services to the industry that promote efficiency, flexibility, and standardization on a global basis. EquiLend’s new CEO will have the skills necessary to advance this mission. Candidates are currently being evaluated, but a decision has not been made,” concludes Vardas.
About EquiLend
EquiLend is a leading provider of trading services for the securities finance industry. With its robust suite of automated trading tools, EquiLend enables its clients to scale their businesses with great efficiency on a global basis in all securities finance markets. Used by borrowers and lenders throughout the world, the EquiLend platform automates formerly manual trading and post-trade processes. Using EquiLend's complete end-to-end services reduces the risk of potential errors and eliminates the need to maintain costly point-to-point connections while allowing firms to drive down unit costs. Firms can then free more resources to expand their business and grow trading volumes without increasing costs. This makes the EquiLend platform a cost-effective choice for all institutions, regardless of their size.
www.equilend.com
EquiLend LLC and EquiLend Europe Limited are subsidiaries of EquiLend Holdings LLC (collectively, "EquiLend"). EquiLend LLC is a member of the NASD and SIPC. EquiLend Europe Limited is authorized and regulated by the Financial Services Authority. All services offered by EquiLend are offered through EquiLend LLC and EquiLend Europe Limited. EquiLend and the EquiLend mark are protected in the United States and in countries throughout the world.
|
