Brixey & Meyer Capital, LLC (BMC) is pleased to announce that Claude E. Davis will be joining the firm as Managing Director effective January 1, 2020 and will work out of BMC's new Cincinnati office located in Mt. Adams.
Dave Brixey, CEO of Brixey & Meyer Capital, said, "we couldn't be more excited to have Claude Davis joining our team. His leadership, track record, and passion for this space will be a huge benefit to our investors and our team. Claude has been a giant in the business community, and we see that continuing as he joins our team at Brixey & Meyer Capital."
Davis, who is both an investor and Chair of the Investment Committee, will oversee day-to-day operations of BMC and its portfolio companies as well as manage the Shared Services Group. David Brixey, current Managing Director, will shift his focus to strategy, vision, transactional buy/sell of the portfolio and investor relations.
Mr. Davis will retire as Executive Chairman of First Financial Bancorp and First Financial Bank at the end 2019 but will continue as Chairman of the Board. First Financial is a $14 billion bank headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio with over 2,000 employees providing a broad array of financial services to consumer and commercial clients. Davis previously served as First Financial Bank's chief executive officer from October 2004 to April 2018. Under his leadership as CEO, the bank more than quadrupled in size, moved its headquarters to Cincinnati, Ohio, expanded to new markets including Dayton, Columbus, Indianapolis and Louisville, and acquired a commercial finance business with a nationwide footprint.
An Indiana native, Davis earned his bachelor's degree in accounting at Butler University in Indianapolis.
Davis is a recipient of the West Chester Liberty Chamber Alliance Everest Award for having a significant positive impact on business, the community and quality of life within the I-75 Growth Corridor. He has also been awarded the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award which recognizes the best innovators and visionary thinkers in the financial services category. Claude has and continues to serve on multiple community Boards in Cincinnati and Indianapolis and was a member of the Board of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland from 2013-2018.
Brixey & Meyer Capital, a lower middle market private equity firm headquartered in Dayton, has raised over $60 million in their Growth Funds I and II investing in profitable and growing small-to-medium size businesses with annual EBITDA of $1-$4 million. BMC strives to create value when buying, operating and selling a company by providing financial services expertise, transactional experience and entrepreneurial passion to succeed.