Deals & People March 21, 2011

HighTower Adds Florida-based Adviser Team

HighTower, a national financial services company serving high-net-worth and institutional clients, announced that Masterson, Emma & Associates will be joining the practice.
Reported by

Mark Masterson and David Emma are joining HighTower as Managing Directors and Partners. Previously, the team was with Merrill Lynch.

Masterson holds a degree in international trade from Auburn University.

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Emma, in addition to his time at Merrill Lynch, has experience as a real estate developer. He was also a professional hockey player for 10 years and was a member of the U.S. Hockey Team in the 1992 Olympics.

Masterson, Emma & Associates is based in Naples, Florida.

“HighTower continues to attract a tremendous amount of seasoned talent from across the financial industry,” said Mike Papedis, HighTower’s Managing Director of Business Development. “As we expand, our focus is advising high net worth clients without the structural conflicts endemic to large integrated financial institutions, while cultivating elite advisers who offer sophisticated investment solutions.”   

Deals & People March 21, 2011

Schwab to Acquire optionsXpress

The Charles Schwab Corporation has agreed to acquire optionsXpress Holdings, Inc., an online retail brokerage firm.
Reported by

Under the terms of the agreement, optionsXpress stockholders will receive 1.02 shares of Schwab stock for each share of optionsXpress stock. Based on Schwab’s closing stock price as of March 18, 2011, the transaction values each optionsXpress share at $17.91, resulting in a total transaction value of approximately $1 billion, the companies said.

Both companies will initially retain their separate brand identities, while benefitting from significant synergies and capabilities across their complementary business lines. The deal is expected to close during the third quarter,

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optionsXpress, launched in 2001 and headquartered in Chicago, offers online retail brokerage services, focused on equity options and futures. Its brokerage platform provides active investors and traders with trading tools, analytics and education to execute a variety of investment strategies.

Following the completion of the acquisition, David Fisher will continue to lead optionsXpress as its President, and become a Schwab Senior Vice President.

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