Opus Bank Announces Additional Expansion of Its Merchant Bank

− Sergey Agafonkin Joins as Director - Merchant Banking Division −

− Jassel J. Lizardi Joins as Associate Director - Merchant Banking Division −

IRVINE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Opus Bank (“Opus” or the “Bank”) (NASDAQ: OPB) announced today the additional expansion of its Merchant Bank with the hires of Sergey Agafonkin, a 15-year investment banking and operating professional, joining as Director - Merchant Banking Division and Jassel J. Lizardi, an 11-year private equity and alternative investment management professional, joining as Associate Director - Merchant Banking Division. Both Mr. Agafonkin and Ms. Lizardi will be responsible for advising middle-market companies, located primarily in the Western region of the U.S., and will focus on providing strategic advisory, debt, equity, and M&A solutions to help enable their growth.

Dale Cheney, Senior Managing Director, Head of the Merchant Banking Division, stated, “We are pleased to add Sergey and Jassel, who are two highly-talented and experienced investment banking professionals. Their backgrounds complement our merchant banking model of providing a comprehensive and integrated debt, equity, M&A, and advisory solution to middle-market companies. Both Sergey and Jassel will be instrumental in continuing to build our merchant banking business and working with entrepreneurs and middle-market companies to expand and create value in their organizations.” Cheney added, “I am also thrilled to be working with Sergey again following our earlier years investing in and managing the success of various Citicorp Venture Capital portfolio companies.”

Stephen H. Gordon, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President of Opus Bank, stated, “Over the years, banks have failed to provide sophisticated strategic advice and creative capital funding solutions to entrepreneurs and middle-market companies, including those individuals and entities acquiring companies, thereby creating a void where successful and resilient entrepreneurs and companies are left without a strategic partner. These middle-market clients are not well served by the larger investment banking firms, and most of the banking industry has returned to being transactional and lacks this entrepreneurial expertise. Opus Bank recognizes this need and opportunity and is committed to addressing this void by providing solution-based and strategic advisory and execution services and debt and equity capital funding solutions through a company’s life cycle to those entrepreneurs and business owners who have a vision to expand and grow their companies.”

Mr. Agafonkin joins Opus Bank’s Merchant Banking Division from William Blair & Company, LLC in Chicago, where he served most recently as a Vice President in the Investment Banking Division and specialized in providing M&A advisory and execution services across numerous services, industrial, and consumer subsectors. From 2009 to 2011, Mr. Agafonkin served as an assistant CFO with a Citicorp Venture Capital portfolio company, where he designed and implemented financial capabilities for its global operations and provided analysis for the restructuring of its outstanding debt, acquisition of its largest competitor, and the disposition of the company through a sale to a private equity firm. From 2006 to 2008, Mr. Agafonkin served as the Chief Financial Officer and member of the Board of Directors of Diversified Energy Corporation. Mr. Agafonkin began his career as a financial analyst with TRW Corporation. Mr. Agafonkin holds a B.A. and an M.B.A. from the W. P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University.

Ms. Lizardi joins Opus Bank’s Merchant Banking Division most recently from Engaged Capital, where she served as Associate Director and was one of the six members who launched the private equity-style hedge fund in 2012. Ms. Lizardi was responsible for helping to establish the firm’s infrastructure, coordinate fund raising efforts, and develop the strategic marketing and investor relations plan. Previously, Ms. Lizardi served with Goldman Sachs & Co. in New York as an Associate within the Investment Management Division. Earlier in her career, Ms. Lizardi served as an Assistant Vice President with Bank of America Merrill Lynch from 2007 to 2011 and was responsible for platform marketing and development within the Alternative Investments Division, which included hedge fund, managed futures, and Private Equity funds on the wealth management platforms for Merrill Lynch and U.S. Trust. Ms. Lizardi began her career in marketing and investments sales at Trust Company of the West. Ms. Lizardi holds a B.A. from the University of Southern California.

About Opus Bank’s Merchant Banking Division

Opus’ Merchant Banking Division focuses on providing senior debt to middle market companies for mergers, acquisitions, balance sheet restructurings, recapitalizations, leveraged buy-outs, and growth capital. The Merchant Banking Division’s equity services and solutions include raising capital through the private placement of equity for clients in the Healthcare, Technology, Commercial Real Estate, Consumer, and Food and Beverage sectors, as well as other sectors served by Opus’ Commercial Banking Division.

About Opus Bank

Opus Bank is an FDIC insured California-chartered commercial bank with $5.1 billion of total assets, $4.1 billion of total loans, and $3.8 billion in total deposits as of December 31, 2014. Opus Bank provides high-value, relationship-based banking products, services, and solutions to its clients through its Retail Bank, Commercial Bank, Merchant Bank, and Correspondent Bank. Opus Bank offers a suite of treasury and cash management and depository solutions and a wide range of loan products, including commercial business, healthcare, technology, multifamily residential, commercial real estate, and structured finance, and is an SBA preferred lender. Opus Bank is an Equal Housing Lender. Opus Bank operates 58 banking offices, including two in the Phoenix metropolitan area of Arizona, 32 in California and 24 in the Seattle/Puget Sound region in Washington. For additional information about Opus Bank, please visit our website: www.opusbank.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains “forward-looking statements.” These forward-looking statements include information, which is subject to change and subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions. The forward-looking information presented in this press release is not a guarantee of future events, and actual events may differ materially from those made in or suggested by the forward-looking information contained in this press release. Forward-looking statements generally can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as “intend” or “expect” or variations thereon or similar terminology. All such statements speak only as of the date made, and Opus Bank undertakes no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Opus Bank
Mr. Stephen H. Gordon, 949-250-9800
Chairman, CEO & President
or
Dale Cheney, 949-250-9800
Senior Managing Director
Merchant Banking Division
or
Mr. Jeff L. Leonard, 949-251-8146
SVP, Director of Corporate Strategy/Communications

Source: Opus Bank

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