George Johns Joins Sandler O’Neill as Principal in Investment Banking Group

Will Lead Firm’s Advisory Practice Focused on Insurance Industry

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sandler O’Neill + Partners, L.P., a full-service investment banking firm specializing in financial services companies, announced today that George Johns has joined the firm as a Principal in the Investment Banking Group. Mr. Johns, who will be based in Sandler O’Neill’s New York headquarters, has 25 years of investment banking experience and will lead the firm’s advisory practice focused on the insurance industry.

“We are extremely pleased to have a banker of George’s talent and experience joining our team in a senior capacity”

Most recently, Mr. Johns served as Managing Director and Head of the Financial Institutions Investment Banking practice at Wachovia Securities. In that position, George was responsible for developing and implementing origination strategy for Wachovia's client base of financial institutions, including those in the specialty finance, insurance, asset management and commercial bank sectors.

Prior to joining Wachovia, Mr. Johns was Co-Head of Global Financial Institutions Corporate and Investment Banking at Banc of America Securities for over five years.

“We are extremely pleased to have a banker of George’s talent and experience joining our team in a senior capacity,” said Brian Sterling, Principal and Co-Head of Investment Banking for Sandler O’Neill. “We have significant opportunities to grow our relationships with insurance companies, and George will play a key leadership role in helping us to achieve this objective.”

“I am delighted to join a firm with such an excellent reputation and established track record in the financial services sector,” Mr. Johns said. “I am excited to be returning to my roots as an M&A practitioner and to help strengthen and broaden the firm’s capabilities in working with insurance clients.”

Mr. Johns holds an M.B.A degree from Stanford University and a B.S. degree from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service.

About Sandler O’Neill + Partners, L.P.

Founded in 1988, Sandler O’Neill + Partners is a full-service investment banking firm dedicated to providing comprehensive, innovative advisory and transaction execution services to the financial industry. The firm specializes in strategic business planning, mergers and acquisitions, capital markets, mutual-to-stock conversions, investment portfolio and interest rate risk management, fixed income securities transactions and mortgage finance restructurings. Sandler O’Neill also is a market maker in hundreds of financial stocks and publishes equity and fixed income research focused on selected banks, thrifts and insurance companies, credit card companies, investment banks, asset managers, specialty finance companies, e-finance companies and transaction execution companies. Additional information about Sandler O’Neill can be found on the firm’s website at www.sandleroneill.com.