Penson Worldwide – the provider of execution, clearing, custody and settlement services on an outsourced basis – has appointed Jay Proffitt and Chris Gregory as joint Managing Directors of the firm in London.
Penson is also renaming its London operations Penson Financial Services Limited. The firm was previously called Penson Worldwide Settlements Limited. Penson says the name change reflects the breadth of the its service offering in the UK, which now matches what the firm does in North America.
In the last nine months, the company has taken on nine new correspondents. “The last 12-18 months have been an enormously exciting time for Penson throughout its North American and European operations,” says Dan Son, President, Penson Worldwide. “Our breadth of flexible service offerings, from clearing, custody and settlement services to front-end trading execution solutions, have been ardently adopted by broker dealers, wealth managers and principal trading firms throughout North America and Europe. In common with Penson’s Canadian and the US operations, Penson Financial Services Limited offers a suite of outsourced services that are tailored to the individual client. The management restructure will enable our UK business to focus on the suite of superior technology and product offerings in the Penson Bureau as well as to further develop and grow the clearing business.”
Jay Proffitt and Chris Gregory both become Managing Directors and members of the executive committee and will be jointly responsible for business growth. Jay Proffitt joined Penson in June 2001 at the Dallas, Texas headquarters as manager of International Integration. Chris Gregory joined Penson in Sept 2003 as Director of Execution Services. Andrew Murray, previously Managing Director, will retain his focus on finance becoming Chief Financial Officer and a member of the Board.
“The next couple of months are going to be the most exciting and most challenging period we’ve faced at Penson in London,” says Gregory. “Having acquired Worldwide Settlements four years ago, it is now time to take the business to the next level. We have some incredible projects in the pipeline and we are looking forward to seeing them come to fruition.’ Jay Proffitt says the growth of the Penson client base is evidence of the firm’s ability to deliver cost effective and flexible solutions. “The requirements of each client are used to create unique solutions from our bureau of products,” he says. “With this dynamic approach and fresh outlook, I look forward to the business challenges and opportunities ahead.”
Penson says it is currently working on multiple transitions of new correspondent clients and expects to see similar growth levels during the next twelve months.