Toronto-Dominion Bank TD-T has set out how it will make room for executives from Cowen Inc. after its acquisition of the New York-based investment bank is completed next year, tapping two senior figures to be co-heads of major divisions alongside current TD leaders.
TD Securities expects to close the US$1.3-billion deal, which aims to accelerate an expansion of its U.S. capital markets business, in the first three months of 2023. When it does, head of corporate and investment banking Robbie Pryde will retire, as the bank announced last week.
That makes room for TD to appoint new co-heads of its investment banking and global markets divisions, each of which will be run by one current TD executive and one senior person from Cowen.
The investment banking unit will be led by Cowen co-president Larry Wieseneck and Tim Wiggan, who moves from his role as co-head of global markets, according to an internal memo by TD Securities chief executive officer Riaz Ahmed.
The other current co-head of global markets, Chris Vogel, will stay put. He will be joined by Cowen’s other co-president, Dan Charney.
Cowen chief executive Jeff Solomon will join TD Securities to run a unit that will be named TD Cowen, as previously announced. He will report to Mr. Ahmed.
Three other Cowen executives will keep their current roles at the new TD Cowen division, according to the memo: chief operating officer John Holmes, chief financial officer Stephen Lasota and general counsel Owen Littman.
Earlier this month, at a financial services conference, TD CEO Bharat Masrani stressed the importance of giving Cowen’s senior leaders “a meaningful and a large role within TD Securities,” in part to guard against the risk of losing them to competitors.
“When you think about it, any of these acquisitions, we’re paying a good premium and they don’t come for free. And most of the value that’s being created is through that management team,” Mr. Masrani said at the conference, which was hosted by Bank of Nova Scotia. “So why go there and destroy it?”
He said that much of the management team in TD’s U.S. division was top talent who came on board through past acquisitions, such as Commerce Bancorp Inc. and TD Banknorth. In particular, Mr. Pryde and former TD Securities CEO Bob Dorrance both came to TD through the bank’s acquisition of Newcrest Capital in 2000.
The new management team represents a significant changing of the guard at TD Securities. Mr. Ahmed took over from Mr. Dorrance a year ago, and head of global markets Moti Jungreis retired in January. Mr. Pryde and Mr. Jungreis were both vice-chairs of TD Securities and were once considered candidates to succeed Mr. Dorrance.
James Bradshaw
Clare O’Hara