Key facts
- Senpoint Partners will reunite former executives of Morrow & Co, Sodali & Co, D.F. King and MacKenzie Partners.
- Michael Verrechia is to join in January after his working restrictions end, two people familiar with the matter said.
- Senpoint will compete with established solicitors Innisfree M&A, Okapi Partners and MacKenzie.
- Paul Schulman said Senpoint built its stock surveillance system from the ground up with the latest technologies, including AI.
Four veteran proxy solicitors have formed Senpoint Partners, a New York-based proxy solicitation and corporate governance firm that will reunite former executives from Morrow & Co, Sodali & Co, D.F. King and MacKenzie Partners, the four founders told Reuters. They said the firm will begin work on Monday as the next proxy season gets underway.
The founding partners are Ron Knox, a former CEO at Morrow & Co; Ed McCarthy, the former head of M&A and Activism at D.F. King; Paul Schulman, the former co-head of M&A and Activism Advisory at Sodali & Co and a former managing director at MacKenzie Partners; and Geoffrey Weinberg, a trained lawyer who previously worked at Weil Gotshal and is the former head of retail shareholder advisory at Sodali & Co. The four men started their careers together in the 1980s.
Michael Verrechia, who was co-head with Schulman of M&A and Activism Advisory at Sodali, will join in January after his working restrictions end, two people familiar with the matter said. Verrechia did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Sam Geoffroy, also a MacKenzie alumnus, will lead Senpoint's stock surveillance operation, which tracks investors buying company shares and derivatives.
Senpoint is entering a proxy solicitation industry where activist investors and a busy dealmaking environment are demanding more shareholder outreach, bankers and lawyers said. The new firm will compete with established solicitors Innisfree M&A, Okapi Partners and MacKenzie.
"This is a proven team that combines experience in solicitation with legal and financial backgrounds," said Eduardo Gallardo, global co-chair of Mergers and Acquisitions at law firm Paul Hastings. "With so much activity going on, there is room for another top-notch firm to come in and compete."
Schulman said the firm built its stock surveillance system from the ground up with the latest technologies, including AI, rather than relying on legacy systems. McCarthy said Senpoint's partners are known for past activism and high-profile M&A work and that the firm will work with companies of all sizes.