Short Takes: Furman Selz Approved For Trust Company

Furman Selz Holdings got approval from the New York State Banking Department last week for a limited purpose trust company to engage primarily in securities lending and custody for institutions.

The New York-based investment bank and prime brokerage had already recruited a former Lehman Brothers executive, Andrew Pettit, to run the trust company. He is joined at Furman Selz by two other former Lehman colleagues, co-manager John Williamson and associate director Tim Donovan.

Furman Selz Trust Co. also announced an arrangement with Brinson Partners in which the Chicago-based subsidiary of Swiss Bank Corp. would provide asset management to securities lending clients.

"Trust and custody powers are perfect complements to our already strong capabilities in prime brokerage," said Edmund A. Hajim, chairman of Furman Selz, in a prepared statement. Furman, previously a privately held company, was acquired Oct. 1 by ING Barings for $600 million. It operates as a wholly owned direct subsidiary of the Dutch banking company.

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