Grant Thornton announced the appointment of James A. Peko as the new national managing principal of the Corporate Advisory & Restructuring Services practice.
“Jim has been an integral part of the transition of our business model to one that best serves the needs of the complex and global marketplace,” said Steve Lukens, national managing principal of Grant Thornton’s Advisory Services. “His combined expertise with restructuring and the structuring of investments made by financial services and private equity organizations allows him to assist clients of the firm—both in the United States and internationally—with highly unique and challenging situations.”
Peko has played an instrumental role in a number of significant restructurings, including having served as financial advisor for AMBAC Assurance as insurer of a large company securitization, several transactions associated with the holdings of a large, international investment management firm based in New York, The Educational Resources Institute, Inc. in its reorganization and emergence from Chapter 11, and the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors in the Chapter 11 bankruptcy of Hancock Fabrics. He also assisted an international team serving as financial advisor to the United Kingdom-based pension plan of Eastman Kodak Co. (Kodak) in its U.S. Chapter 11 reorganization. Peko has advised a diverse spectrum of clients in industries ranging from airline, automotive, engineering and construction, financial services, gaming, hospitality, manufacturing, media, real estate, retail, technology and utility.
Peko has more than 24 years’ experience in capital markets and restructuring serving companies in transition for the last 12 years. He has been a principal with Grant Thornton for more than six years and currently serves as a principal in the Corporate Advisory & Restructuring Services practice. His previous experience includes serving as a first vice president in the corporate finance group at The Nikko Securities Co. International Inc., where he managed more than 100 financings for issuers, including Disney, Hewlett Packard, the entity formerly known as General Motors Acceptance Corporation, Ford Motor Credit Corporation, Intel Corporation, Argentina, Columbia, Mexico and Uruguay.
In addition, Peko is a member of the Association of Insolvency & Restructuring Advisors, CFA Institute, Turnaround Management Association, and the American Bankruptcy Institute for which he also serves as an editor of its Financial Advisor and Investment Banking Committee Newsletter.
Peko is also a chartered financial analyst, certified insolvency and restructuring advisor, holds a certification in distressed business valuation, and is a FINRA general securities registered representative – Series 7.
Grant Thornton LLP’s Corporate Advisory & Restructuring Services (CARS) group includes more than 60 professionals in the U.S. and over 1,000 restructuring professionals around the world. The group’s professionals possess extensive experience with both bankruptcy and out-of-court restructuring, spanning many industries, including automotive, financial services, gaming and hospitality, healthcare, manufacturing, real estate and retail. Clients include debtors, lenders, individual creditors and creditor committees, in addition to officers and directors and the boards and committees involved with corporate governance.