CIBC Innovation Banking expanded its presence in the Southeast by opening a new office in Durham, NC. This is CIBC Innovation Banking’s 14th regional office.
Alan Spurgin, current managing director and co-head of U.S. technology banking at CIBC Innovation Banking, will lead the group’s expansion into North Carolina. Walt Sparks will work with Spurgin in the new office after joining the CIBC Innovation Banking team as an executive director.
Sparks will focus on expanding the CIBC Innovation Banking team’s syndicated lending efforts and bring its offerings to startups and entrepreneurs of the region and across the United States. Sparks has almost 10 years of experience in executing various syndicated structures for sponsor-backed companies ranging from early-stage venture capital to late-stage PE buyouts. Before joining CIBC Innovation Banking, Sparks worked within PNC’s technology finance group, focusing on recurring revenue lending to software-as-a-service businesses across the globe.
In addition to the new office in Durham, NC, CIBC Innovation Banking further bolstered its talent in the Northeast by bringing on Andrew Phillips as a managing director in its Boston office.
Phillips brings more than 15 years of experience in senior secured lending, with a history of banking software and technology businesses ranging in stage from high growth to public. He held various sponsor coverage and specialized lending roles of increasing responsibility at Wells Fargo Foothill/ Wells Fargo Capital Finance before joining CIBC Innovation Banking.
“We’re thrilled to be expanding our presence and growing our team with top talent in these key eastern markets, well-known for their established startup ecosystems,” Mark McQueen, president and executive managing director at CIBC Innovation Banking, said. “As we look to bring the CIBC Innovation Banking brand and product suite to the Southeastern region and bolster our existing capabilities in the Northeast, Walt and Andrew’s combined experience and demonstrated know-how will be pivotal to our ecosystem as we look to help fuel the next wave of software, life sciences, healthcare and cleantech innovation companies.”
