Oppenheimer announced the continued expansion of its Fixed Income Division with the addition of 10 more High Yield and Distressed Debt Team members.

The additions coincide with a more challenging credit environment and expansion of the firm's restructuring and debt advisory capabilities. Oppenheimer is well positioned to help clients navigate ballooning inflation and elevated interest rates, which have reached a 13-year high while net interest expenses have soared to levels not seen in 30 years. Moreover, these additions to the firm's Fixed Income Division come as other large Financial Institutions on Wall Street have either scaled back or shuttered their distressed trading desks.

The combined expertise of the new members will further strengthen the firm's capabilities across the spectrum of credit products, beyond its recognized expertise in high yield and distressed bonds. Many highly levered companies with lower credit ratings, particularly those that borrowed heavily post pandemic, operate in sectors undergoing secular changes. This dynamic has created challenges and opportunities for the firm's institutional clients, who can benefit from Oppenheimer's enhanced fixed income capabilities.

"We're making deep investments at a time when we believe there's great opportunity to invest in sourcing, trading and distribution expertise for differentiated credit products on behalf of our institutional clients," said Peter Albano, Senior Managing Director and Global Head of Fixed Income at Oppenheimer. "These include bank loans, distressed bonds, reorg equity, preferreds and claims."

The new hires report to Jay McDermott, Head of Leveraged Finance Sales and Trading. McDermott and 10 other Distressed Debt Team members from TD Cowen joined Oppenheimer in late 2023. The new team members are:

• Michael Brennan, Managing Director, Sales
• Daniela Bar-Ilan, Managing Director, Sales
• Jeremy Goldman, Managing Director, Sales
• John Mori, Managing Director, Co-Head of Distressed
• Kirk Ruddy, Managing Director, Sales
• Jay Sommer, Managing Director, Co-Head of Special Assets
• Peter Taukus, Managing Director, Trading
• Kevin Cleary, Executive Director, Sales
• Gail Rosenblum, Executive Director, Special Assets
• Jason Gong, Associate, Research

Oppenheimer's High Yield Desk and Distressed Debt Team now consists of 32 professionals, including dedicated traders, salespeople, sourcers and analysts. Over a third of the team has more than 15 years of experience in the space. The team covers over 1,000 institutional accounts.

"By continuing to build out our team, we have positioned Oppenheimer to stand out as an industry leader in high yield and distressed debt," said Robert Lowenthal, President of Oppenheimer. "The steady stream of restructurings and liability management programs emerging over the next few years provides an increasing number of investment opportunities, especially as a substantial wall of global speculative-grade corporate maturities are set to come due."

McDermott concluded, "As a more classic distressed cycle emerges, with a U-shape rather than the V-shaped recoveries we've seen since the Great Financial Crisis, a longer entry and longer recovery is poised to play out. Oppenheimer's Leveraged Finance Sales and Trading capabilities are well positioned to help our clients navigate this increasingly complex and difficult environment."