HilltopSecurities hires six former UBS professionals as part of expansion plan

HilltopSecurities hired six former UBS professionals as part of a wider plan to expand its public finance footprint.

"We remain committed to adding professionals nationwide to our public finance business who offer a full product solution set to their clients," said Brad Winges, president of HilltopSecurities. "This is the first group of many hires that we plan on making over the next 12 to 18 months as we remain focused on expanding upon our existing leading position in municipal banking."

Hilltop, which ranked 18th in the top underwriters of 2023, underwriting $3.813 billion in 184 deals, per LSEG data, hired Michele Vobach as senior managing director and head of healthcare to be based in Dallas.

"Michele Vobach is a seasoned professional with expertise in several areas, including healthcare, project finance and higher education," said Mike Bartolotta, co-head of Public Finance. "She has covered the Southwest for many years and has a good understanding of this market as well as a national perspective. In addition to her account coverage, Michele has exceptional management skills and will be instrumental in driving our business forward." 

The firm also hired Allison Pink, as a senior vice president based in Chicago; Alec Birks as assistant vice president also based in Chicago; Jeff Cepler as senior vice president to be based in New York; Arthur Staub as managing director to be based in New York; and Oliver Bendixen as assistant vice president, based in New York. They started at Hilltop last week.

The firm is not done expanding, according to Bartolotta.

"We continue to interview professionals in public finance across the entire industry, those at our peers as well as those on the buy-side and those in other verticals, such as cash management, derivatives, and fixed income who have an understanding of the needs of public entities," he said.

Winges said they were hired because of "their knowledge, experience, and strong cultural fit with HilltopSecurities' team."

After UBS declared it was ending its negotiated underwriting business in October, UBS laid off most of its public finance staff. In December Citi announced it was closing its municipals division.

Many market participants believe the exits stemmed from a second year of declining volume that increased competition for fewer deals and tightened underwriting spreads. Cheapening bond valuations have challenged balance sheets. The March banking crisis and political dynamics in Texas, one of the market's largest issuers and previously one of Citi's top clients, were other pressure points. 

More firms are hiring former UBS and Citi employees and many participants expect firms to expand as a result of the larger banks' exit. Oppenheimer & Co., Inc. recently hired veteran Chicago banker Elizabeth Coolidge as head of public finance along with several other former UBS employees.