Merriman Capital Establishes Riverbank Partners to Expand Investment Banking Capabilities

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 11, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Merriman Capital, a wholly owned subsidiary of Merriman Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq: MERR), today announced the formation of a new investment banking division, Riverbank Partners ("Riverbank"), to help independent investment bankers serve their corporate clients and grow their respective franchises.

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Riverbank Partners will support independent bankers by leveraging Merriman's existing institutional investor distribution, compliance and legal services, technology infrastructure and idea generation.

Riverbank will be managed by Wall Street veterans Ed Bralower and Dean Benjamin. Bralower has 25 years of experience as a senior sales trader and relationship manager at Jefferies Group, Inc. Benjamin has more than 20 years of experience in the areas of law, investment banking, structured finance and private equity with firms such as Schulte Roth & Zabel, Credit Suisse and Ascent Real Estate Advisors, LLC.

"Eddie and Dean have an innovative model that we believe will aggressively expand our capital markets and origination capabilities as we help independent, entrepreneurial investment bankers maximize opportunities for their clients," said Alex Seiler, CEO of Merriman Capital, Inc. "Their deep contacts and relentless energy will also benefit other areas of Merriman Capital, including our sales and trading business. We look forward to helping them grow Riverbank into a significant player in the independent investment banking arena."

Bralower and Benjamin's group will work closely with Merriman Capital's Alex Seiler, CEO, Jon Merriman, co-chairman, and Michael Marrus, head of investment banking.  Bralower and Benjamin will operate out of Merriman's New York office, with a Riverbank office opening in Connecticut in February.    

"We are excited to partner with Merriman in supporting entrepreneurial investment bankers who have recently gained independence from bulge bracket firms," Bralower said. "Merriman has the infrastructure and distribution to help us tailor capital markets services for seasoned investment bankers, enabling them to remain focused on understanding and meeting their clients' expectations."

"Riverbank has similar potential to our former Institutional Cash Distributors ("ICD") division, which was formed in 2003 and became a meaningful contributor to our revenues until its sale in 2010," said Jon Merriman. "The independent investment banking business is an equally significant opportunity.  Riverbank will be a strong resource central to our core focus of providing fast growing companies access to capital, which is crucial to building employment and ultimately our economic recovery."

About Merriman Holdings, Inc.

Merriman Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: MERR) is a financial services firm focused on fast-growing companies and the institutions that invest in them. The company offers high-quality investment banking, equity research, institutional services and corporate & venture services.  Merriman specializes in three industry growth sectors: Technology, CleanTech and Consumer, Media & Internet. For more information, please go to http://www.merrimanco.com/.

Note to Investors

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements based on our current expectations, forecasts and assumptions that involve risks and uncertainties. This release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of offers to buy any securities of the Company. Forward-looking statements in this release are based on information available to us as of the date hereof. Our actual results may differ materially from those stated or implied in such forward-looking statements, due to risks and uncertainties associated with our business, which include the risk factors disclosed in our Form 10-K/A filed on April 30, 2010. Forward-looking statements include statements regarding our expectations, beliefs, intentions or strategies regarding the future and can be identified by forward-looking words such as "anticipate," believe," "could," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "should," and "would" or similar words. We assume no obligation to update the information included in this press release, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. The Form 10-K/A filed on April 30, 2010 and the Form 10-Q filed on November 15, 2010, together with this press release and the financial information contained herein, are available on our website, www.merrimanco.com . Please click on "Investor Relations."

SOURCE Merriman Holdings, Inc.