US broker-dealer BTIG has expanded its London office with the appointment of three sales traders: Chris McGale, Jon Clements and Adam Bowers.
McGale joins BTIG from investment bank Bryan Garnier & Co, where he was a sales trader. He began his career as a buy-side analyst in Dublin before joining UK-based stockbroker Smith New Court, prior to its takeover by US broker Merrill Lynch, where he worked for more than 10 years and held various managerial positions. After Merrill Lynch, McGale returned to Dublin with investment banking and brokerage group Numis Securities and was later head of institutional sales at investment banking group Pali International.
Clements joins BTIG from asset management firm AllianceBernstein, where he spent 10 years trading European equities in New York and London. Prior to AllianceBernstein, Clements was a UK equities trader with Credit Suisse asset management. He has more than 19 years of experience trading UK and European markets, and began his career at private bank Kleinwort Benson, where he was a market maker in the banks and insurance sector.
Bowers joins BTIG from Hoenig & Company, a Hong Kong subsidiary of trading technology provider and agency broker ITG, where he spent eight years covering institutional and hedge fund accounts on a global basis. Prior to that, Bowers was an equities market maker at HSBC and a financial futures trader on NYSE LIFFE with Lloyds Futures and Dutch bank ING Barings.
“BTIG has expanded its regional and international capabilities over the last five years with offices now in London, Hong Kong, Singapore and Australia as well as 10 US locations,” said Gary Hayes, CEO of BTIG in Europe.
BTIG has been building up its London operations over recent months. Five new staff joined in February 2011, four of which were from rival brokerage Pali International. The firm also added
four new sales and trading staff in October 2010, as well as a London desk for fixed income focused on emerging markets, in September 2010.
The firm is also currently seeking to grow its share of institutional business in Asia, where it made a number of senior appointments in February 2011.