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New Firm of Brokers Opening Its Doors
Byline: Richard Tyler

Birmingham's new stockbroking firm Arden Partners will open its doors to business next Monday.

It will sport a 16-strong small and mid cap companies sales, trading and research team in the city, backed up by satellite offices in London and Bristol.

The firm, staffed by former Albert E Sharp partners and employees, will now also boast a corporate finance capability, having hired Richard Day from Cazenove. Managing director John Paterson, who resigned from Sharps when it was taken over by Old Mutual Securities in 1998, said the response so far had been promising.

'People like the idea of a group setting up on their own and funding themselves and putting their necks on the line. People respect the team for that,' he said. 'Of course, the proof of the pudding will be when they start trading with us, but the noises at the moment are encouraging.'

The firm will not conduct market making as it does not want to make money by buying or selling shares at their clients' expense.

Instead the sales staff, led by former OMS head of equities Dominic King, will use their contacts with institutions to help them buy or sell equities with either a market maker or another institutional fund manager on the other side of the trade.

'Arden Partners has possibly one of the most experienced and longest serving institutional stockbroking teams and, although small in relation to the large international houses, will have one of the largest dedicated small cap teams in the UK when it opens for business,' said Mr Paterson. Authorised by the Financial Services Authority and registered as a limited company, Arden intends to run itself like a traditional partnership, with each of the 12 founding senior sales, analysts and traders holding an equal share.

Extra funding has come from Midland property entrepreneur Grahame Whateley, who chairs out-of-town retail specialists Castlemore Securities, in return for 10 per cent of the equity and preference shares. HSBC has set up a debt facility for the firm.

Mr Day joins other recent additions, including Tony Quirke, a specialist salesman in Irish equities from Investec and consultant Tom Morris-Jones, a former Sharps partner.

Former Old Mutual Securities sales staff Clare Preston and Will Orgee were recruited. They were made redundant when OMS closed its Birmingham office. .