E*Trade Financial Corporation
Benzi moves into E*Trade
13 May 2014
Linda Benzi has moved into E*Trade Financial Corporation as head of securities lending trading. Her aim? To create a cohesive, transparent environment, give the business a fresh perspective, mitigate risk and protect the firm
Image: Shutterstock
Why did you join E*Trade?
Securities Lending is one of E*Trade Financial Corporation’s influential business lines that senior management felt would be enhanced by moving it from the west coast to the east coast, which is closer to corporate headquarters. This decision created new (usually scarce), securities lending positions.
There were a number of very qualified participants who interviewed for the position. I was fortunate enough to achieve the position because I have not only managed the supply desk at Goldman Sachs after working in various operations roles, but I also have a well-rounded background that includes relationship management, business development, regulatory exposure and market data from my past positions at EquiLend and Data Explorers (which later became Markit Securities Finance).
I have always treasured securities lending as a career, so when a friend encouraged me to look into the head of trading position at E*Trade, I suddenly felt an excitement and passion that I have not felt since I left trading, so I knew had to apply. I am so grateful for the opportunity to return to a world I have always valued and cherished.
Who is a part of your team at E*Trade?
I have an amazing team at E*Trade. Our team has a depth of securities lending experience ranging from 10 to 22 years. Anthony Barros, who has worked at Paloma Securities, Jeffries & Company and RCap Securities, joins me as a director and will manage the desk on a day-to-day basis. We also have experienced and senior industry traders in Anthony Polito, Vincent Molinari, Robert Lynch and Leo Rosenholz, who are all well-known in the industry.
What are doing as head of securities lending trading, and what are you charged with achieving?
My initial goal is to create a cohesive, transparent environment while giving the business a fresh perspective and mitigating risk and protecting the firm. As a team, we are working on solidifying and growing relationships with our counterparties as well as bringing in new relationships.
E*Trade as a whole is very involved in industry initiatives, but I have found that the firm does not have a public voice from a securities lending perspective, so Anthony and I have already reached out to the Risk Management Association and Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) about participation, and I recently joined the Prime Broker/Securities Lending Committee at SIFMA to keep abreast of changes that affect our industry as well as to contribute to solutions. Our overall goal is to work together and make the business more efficient and automated, as well as deliver an enhanced overall experience for our counterparties and customer base.
What sort of securities lending trading has E*Trade traditionally carried out?
We have a very conservative and focused business model. We will continue to lend E*Trade inventory at optimal levels through our retail base and continue to provide top level service to our counterparties and retail clients by allowing them to short hard to borrow securities. But we are taking a fresh approach to what we have available and have already made progress in increasing the volumes that we have been lending out to the street.
We are also working on offering a more competitive box rate as well as a more efficient, automated method of lending. At some point, we are looking forward to broadening our lending scope to include more exchange-traded funds, Canadian securities, American depository receipts and special situation issues. The fully paid product is something that we have analysed and researched in-depth, and we are hopeful that we will be able to introduce that initiative in the near future, allowing us to continue to be competitive in this space.
What does E*Trade bring to the table for securities lending clients that others do not?
E*Trade was founded on customer advocacy, needs and fairness, and our securities lending product is no different. Our management team is determined to level the playing field for retail investors to ensure best execution for our customers. This principle continues to govern our every decision and underscores the company’s commitment to our customers.
Our investors enjoy being empowered. They want the tools to manage their accounts on their terms, which is why we recently launched a completely new brand platform, Type E*. It encapsulates our desire to build deeper relationships with our customers. As a trusted partner in helping retail investors navigate the markets and improve their financial well being, we take our role quite seriously and E*Trade continues in its determination to obtain price improvement for its customers.
We posted positive earnings in Q1, which was our best quarterly financial performance in more than six years. This is a testament to E*Trade’s senior management team remaining very committed to the growth in our business and taking the necessary steps to reduce our risk profile while continuing to execute on our strategy and capital plan throughout the year.
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