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July 16, 2003
Wachovia Securities Hires Industry Veteran Arturo Cifuentes to Spearhead CDO Research Effort
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Wachovia Securities announced today that Arturo Cifuentes, an industry veteran widely credited with developing a standard methodology for rating CDO securities, has been hired as a Managing Director and senior CDO analyst. Cifuentes will report to Brian Lancaster, Managing Director and head of Structured Products research in the firm's Fixed Income Division.
Cifuentes, who holds advanced degrees in engineering and finance, previously was co-head of the Structured Products Group at Triton Partners, and co-managed Triton Opportunities Fund I, a $307 million CDO of CDOs fund rated by Moody's and Standard & Poor's. Prior to joining Triton, Cifuentes was a Managing Director with Ambac Assurance Corp.'s CBO/CLO group.
"Arturo is a great addition to our team. He brings a depth of experience from structuring and rating CDO securities and will take our already strong CDO research efforts to the top," said Lancaster.
Cifuentes was a major contributor to the development of a methodology used by Moody's Investors Service to assign ratings to CDOs. While at Moody's, Cifuentes rated more than 50 CDO transactions, including pioneering emerging market, REIT, distressed loan and balance sheet CDO securities.
"Working with Wachovia, which I believe has one of the most intelligent and well thought out CDO platforms in the market, as well as being a part of Brian Lancaster's team, is an incredible opportunity", said Cifuentes. "Wachovia has a solid record in terms of innovation and deal performance."
Cifuentes holds a Ph.D. in Applied Mechanics and a M.S. degree in Civil Engineering from the California Institute of Technology. He received an MBA in Finance from New York University, where he was honored with the Stern Scholar Award. He holds an undergraduate degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Chile.
Cifuentes will work out of the firm's New York offices.
Wachovia Securities Structured Products Group provides comprehensive global capability in CDO and structured transactions. It specializes in Real Estate CDOs through its Commercial Real Estate Securitization Trust (CREST) program, Middle Market CLOs, Asset-Backed CDOs, Investment Grade cash and synthetic CDOs and Leverage Loan CLOs via its APEX structure.
About Wachovia
Wachovia Corporation (NYSE:WB), created through the September 1, 2001, merger of First Union and Wachovia, had assets of $348 billion and stockholders' equity of $32 billion at March 31, 2003. Wachovia is a leading provider of financial services to retail, brokerage and corporate customers throughout the East Coast and the nation. Wachovia is also the nation's second-largest treasury management services provider for both domestic and international treasury management and consulting services. Cash flow solutions include, among other products, e-commerce, integrated payables and receivables, information reporting via Web or PC, and risk management. The company operates full-service banking offices under the First Union and Wachovia names in 11 East Coast states and Washington, D.C., and offers full-service brokerage with offices in 48 states. Global services are provided through more than 30 international offices. Online banking and brokerage products and services are available through wachovia.com.
Important Notice: Wachovia Securities is the trade name for (i) the corporate and investment banking services of Wachovia Corporation and its subsidiaries, including Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC ("WCM"), member NYSE, NASD, SIPC.; and (ii) two separate, registered broker-dealers and non-bank affiliates of Wachovia Corporation providing certain retail securities brokerage services: Wachovia Securities, LLC, member NYSE/SIPC, and Wachovia Securities Financial Network, LLC, member NASD/SIPC.
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