Press Releaseshttp://www.msarecruiting.comSun, 05 Sep 2010 11:07:16 GMTBOK FINANCIAL NAMES BEN COWEN PRESIDENT OF ITS MORTGAGE COMPANYhttp://www.msarecruiting.com/bok-financial-names-ben-cowen-president-of-its-mortgage-companyTue, 03 Mar 2009 16:17:54 GMTTami CoffeyTulsa, OK – BOK Financial has named industry veteran Ben Cowen as the President of it’s mortgage arm, BOK Mortgage.

BOK Financial Corporation (NASDAQ symbol BOKF) is a Top – 40 $21billion financial holding company based in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The company operates 7 bank subsidiaries in 8 states throughout the Midwest, Southwest and Rocky Mountain regions, consisting of 189 banking locations. Additionally, it owns TransFund, the nation’s 8th largest electronic funds transfer (ATM) network, which services over 380 financial institutions throughout 12 states. BOKF offers wealth management services nationwide with assets under management totaling $36 billion, including $13.9 billion in discretionary assets. It leads the state of Oklahoma in consumer, commercial and mortgage banking transactions with over 80 locations statewide and marked its 17th consecutive year of record earnings in 2007. BOKF has been recognized as one of the 400 Best Big Companies in America by Forbes for the past two years.

Cowen officially took direction of BOK Mortgage on December 15th, reporting to BOKF Senior Executive Vice President Steve Bradshaw. Cowen’s appointment is part of BOK Financial’s focus on growing the mortgage company while adapting to the changing mortgage climate and the challenging U.S. economy. “While this environment creates additional risk and poses some potential changes to the way we do business, I clearly see opportunities for us”, Bradshaw commented. “One of Ben’s first priorities will be to analyze our business model and sales structure to determine whether we need to modify our product set, pricing strategy or delivery methods. I’m confident Ben will deliver the strong leadership and clear vision we need to outperform our competitors.”

Dallas based Mortgage Search & Acquisition (MSA) conducted the nationwide search for the lender’s top spot. MSA President Tami Coffey commented, “This search resulted in a substantial candidate pool, however Ben was a clearly a front runner from the beginning; his career has been centered around the responsible growth of mortgage banking based organizations under his direction. We felt that the BOK culture was a great match for Ben both personally and professionally.”

Mortgage Search & Acquisition operates offices in Dallas and Reno, specializing in executive search and acquisition services for the financial services sector.

Cowen brings over 25 years of mortgage banking experience in multiple production channels to BOK Financial, including retail, wholesale, correspondent lending and consumer based banking. His most current role was with LendingTree as National Sales Director. He previously served as Senior Vice President at Wachovia, managing national wholesale and branch operations. From 1996 to 2004, Ben held executive leadership roles with Bank of America in the areas of Operations, Sales, Correspondent Lending and as Senior Vice President of its National Growth and Strategy Group. Cowen earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from the University of Houston in 1981 and is a certified Six Sigma Green Belt. Cowen will relocate to Tulsa from his current residence in Charlotte, North Carolina.

“I’m looking forward to leading BOK Financial’s mortgage company” said Cowen. “This is a strong bank with a great foundation and an excellent track record. I’m eager to improve its competitive position in the fast growing markets we serve.”

For additional information, please contact Tami Coffey at Mortgage Search & Acquisition at 214-733-8989 (www.MSArecruiting.com) or BOK Financial at 918-588-6000.

]]>http://www.msarecruiting.com/bok-financial-names-ben-cowen-president-of-its-mortgage-companyW.J. Bradley Names New Controllerhttp://www.msarecruiting.com/wj-bradley-names-new-controllerTue, 03 Mar 2009 16:01:28 GMTTami CoffeyDallas Texas - July 10, 2008 - Colorado based W.J. Bradley Company announced today the appointment of James Hagen, CPA, as its new Controller. Hagen’s hire came as the result of an extensive search effort conducted by Dallas based Mortgage Search & Acquisition (MSA).

Hagen has an extensive financial services based background, most recently holding positions with Flagstone Lending Group and previously as Chief Financial Officer for Allied Home Mortgage. Prior to

Allied, Hagen served as Chief Financial Officer for Denver’s Cherry Creek Mortgage. He entered the Financial Services arena in the 1980’s while serving as CFO for the National Republican Senatorial Committee in Washington DC. Hagen graduated from the University of Wisconsin. Hagen will be relocating from his home in Houston to Denver, the site of W.J. Bradley’s corporate offices.

“I am excited about joining W.J. Bradley; they have surrounded themselves with talented industry professionals and I’m looking forward to working with such a great team,” Hagen commented. Roy Browning, W.J. Bradley’s newly appointed CFO, stated, “We are very pleased that Jim chose to join us. He has a great background and a solid track record of success in the industry.”

]]>http://www.msarecruiting.com/wj-bradley-names-new-controllerFortes Financial Secures National City Mortgage Wholesale Divisionhttp://www.msarecruiting.com/fortes-financial-secures--national-city-mortgage-wholesale-divisionMon, 02 Mar 2009 17:14:57 GMTTami CoffeyDallas Texas - July 1, 2008 - Fortes Financial, Inc. has completed the assumption of five regional wholesale offices formerly belonging to National City Mortgage Corporation. The offices are located in San Diego, Dallas, Chicago, Fredrick MD and Atlanta. Dallas based Mortgage Search & Acquisition (MSA) played an integral role in the transaction.

Fortes Financial, Inc. was founded in August of 2007 by Peter J. Levasseur, President and CEO, and Janice M. Ibey, Executive Vice President and COO, with the backing of a private equity firm. Shortly after its inception, Fortes began executing its strategy to capitalize on opportunities arising from a market in disarray. In the first quarter of 2008, they acquired the assets of a retail mortgage banking platform, originating both forward and reverse mortgages and subsequently assuming control of National City Mortgage’s wholesale origination operation. Fortes currently has over 400 employees.

National City’s wholesale division closed $17 billion in 2007 before announcing plans to exit wholesale lending at the end of the same year. MSA’s President, Tami Coffey, commented, “Fortes engaged us to identify potential retail or wholesale groups that fit within their corporate profile; we felt that the National City team was a quality, productive entity that would work well under the Fortes umbrella.” With offices in Dallas and Reno, MSA specializes within the mortgage banking and financial services industry, offering executive recruiting and Acquisition services to its national client base.


]]>http://www.msarecruiting.com/fortes-financial-secures--national-city-mortgage-wholesale-divisionW.J. Bradley Names New Chief Financial Officerhttp://www.msarecruiting.com/wj-bradley-names-new-chief-financial-officerTue, 23 Jun 2009 19:51:53 GMTTami CoffeyDallas Texas - June 16, 2008 - Colorado based W.J. Bradley Company announced today the appointment of Roy Browning as it’s new Chief Financial Officer. Browning’s hire came as the result of an extensive search effort conducted by Dallas based Mortgage Search & Acquisition (MSA).

Browning has an extensive financial services based background, most recently serving as Executive Vice

President and CFO at Collateral Real Estate Capital, LLC and previously as Executive Vice President and CFO for Aurora Loan Services, LLC, a mortgage banking subsidiary of Lehman Brothers. Aurora grew to over 2700 employees with originations exceeding $50billion annually by 2006. Previously, Browning held executive positions for Bridge Information Services and Greenpoint Mortgage. He graduated from Phillips University with a BS in Business / Accounting in 1974 and became a CPA in 1975. Browning will be relocating from his home in Birmingham to Denver, the site of W.J. Bradley’s corporate offices.

“I am looking forward to being a part of W.J. Bradley; they are a cutting edge lender with an executive team that consistently thinks outside the box” commented Browning. “It’s a very fast paced environment in which everyone shares the same vision and is ready to work hard to make it happen.”

 Licensed in 22 states, W. J. Bradley is a privately held residential lender headquartered in Denver, Colorado with centralized operations centered in Salt Lake City, Utah.  

]]>http://www.msarecruiting.com/wj-bradley-names-new-chief-financial-officerPROSPECT MORTGAGE NAMES NEW COOhttp://www.msarecruiting.com/prospect-mortgage-names-new-cooMon, 02 Mar 2009 17:10:39 GMTTami Coffey

Dallas Texas November 20th, 2007 - Dallas based executive search firm Mortgage Search & Acquisition (www.MSArecruiting.com) has announced the placement of Richard Loeffler as Chicago based Prospect Mortgage’s new Chief Operating Officer. Loeffler has 27 years of diversified mortgage banking experience, most recently as Chief Administrative Officer for American Home Mortgage, the 10th largest mortgage lender in the country prior to its closure in September. As CAO, Loeffler was a member of the executive Acquisition Team, leading the company through the successful integration of 14 reported acquisitions.

Read more here 

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