Washington, DC (January 5, 2009) – FOCUS LLC, a national middle market investment banking firm providing merger, acquisition, divestiture and corporate finance services, announces that Keith Walz has joined the Midwest Chicago office as a managing director. Walz has more than 15 years experience in private equity investing, focusing on providing growth capital to privately held businesses in the Enterprise Software, Network Infrastructure, and technology-aided Manufacturing industries.
“Keith’s service on the board of directors of more than a dozen portfolio companies is a great asset to FOCUS. He provides exceptional strategic planning advice and has maximized the shareholder value of many of his clients. This is the kind of experience we believe will help grow our Midwest office and provide us a real advantage in transactions involving private equity groups,” said Fred Floberg, Midwest regional manager of FOCUS.
Prior to joining FOCUS, Walz co-founded and was a Managing Partner of Kinsale Capital Partners, a leveraged buy-out private equity investment firm focused on acquiring and enhancing the value of lower-middle market businesses.
Mr. Walz was also President and CFO of Sand Hill IT Security, a special purpose acquisition company. Sand Hill raised $24 million through an initial public offering for the purpose of acquiring a information technology security business. Mr. Walz participated in the sourcing and evaluation of over 100 acquisition candidates, commencing with the $60 million acquisition of St. Bernard software. Mr. Walz was also a member of the Board of Directors of Community Bankers Acquisition Corporation, a $70 million special purpose acquisition company established to acquire regional banks.
Prior to the formation of Kinsale Capital Partners, Walz had been a Managing Director at ABN ARMO Capital’s Global Private Equity division with over $2 billion in investment capital. As a senior partner with the firm, Walz participated in the sourcing, evaluation and monitoring of over 35 investments with a total enterprise value exceeding $1.5 billion, representing $200 million of capital invested.
Walz holds an MBA from DePaul University and a Bachelor of Science degree in finance from the University of Arkansas.
About FOCUS LLC
FOCUS LLC provides a range of middle market investment banking services with an emphasis on mergers, acquisitions, divestitures and corporate finance. FOCUS is headquartered in Washington, D.C. with regional offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco. FOCUS specializes in business units with transactions or revenues in the $5-300 million range, serving entrepreneurs, corporate owners and various types of investors across a broad range of industries, throughout the U.S. and worldwide. FOCUS bankers are seasoned operating and financial executives with extensive transaction experience. Securities transactions conducted by Wm. H. Murphy & Co., Inc. registered Broker Dealer member FINRA/SIPC. For more information on FOCUS, visit www.focusbankers.com.
