Hovde Group has formed a new practice to provide financial strategy advisory services to regional and community banks. Industry veteran Ray Chandonnet will lead this new venture. He joins Hovde following a distinguished thirty-year career working extensively with banking clients in the areas of asset-liability management, corporate finance, fixed income sales, and FinTech.
Chandonnet will spearhead the build-out of the new financial strategy advisory practice, and work extensively with the firm’s clients on balance sheet, funding, liquidity, capital, portfolio and interest rate risk management strategy. He will work closely with Hovde’s senior management team to pursue other new opportunities for the firm, particularly in the area of FinTech, and its evolving relationship with the banking sector. Chandonnet and his team will be based in the New York metro area.
“We are thrilled to add the premier strategist in the sector to help us build our new balance sheet advisory practice, which we see as a logical “next step” in our effort to provide an unrivaled suite of products and services to our banking clientele,” commented Steven Hovde, chairman and CEO. “Ray’s wealth of experience will be of tremendous value across all of the firm’s existing business lines, and in new areas, such as FinTech, where I plan to work personally with Ray to develop these new opportunities for the firm.”
Chandonnet added, “In returning to investment banking, I couldn’t be more delighted to join forces with Hovde Group, who are universally respected and admired in the banking industry for their abilities, integrity, innovativeness, and singular focus on community / regional banks. With bank margins being challenged by market conditions, and digitization of banking growing rapidly, combining my skills in those areas with Hovde’s reach in the industry will bring game-changing solutions to our clients.”
