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Mr. Locke advises management and directors on the strategic options available to financial institutions. He has worked with clients on both the buy-side and sell-side of mergers and acquisitions as well as branch and subsidiary divestitures. In addition to M&A activities, Mr. Locke is also involved in raising capital, both debt and equity, for community banks and thrifts. In this capacity, he has handled the conversion of mutual thrifts to stock form and private placements of equity and trust preferred securities. Throughout his career, Mr. Locke has advised clients on a wide variety of transactions representing more than a billion dollars in aggregate transaction value. Furthermore, he has authored or contributed to various publications on trends in the financial services sector with an emphasis on the state of community banking.
Prior to joining Hovde Financial, Mr. Locke worked for a Chicago-based international consulting firm that is now part of Navigant Consulting, Inc. During his tenure in management consulting, he focused on strategic planning, business development and valuation services for clients in the financial services, healthcare and utility industries.
Mr. Locke earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from the University of Michigan and remains involved in the University's Alumni Association. Mr. Locke is a CFA charterholder (Chartered Financial Analyst) and is licensed with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority as a registered representative (Series 7 and 63). He is also a member of the CFA Institute and the Investment Analysts Society of Chicago. Mr. Locke actively works with several charitable organizations and serves on the board of a charity benefiting victims of TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury). Recently, he traveled to Lesotho, in the Southern region of Africa, to help build homes and provide food to people living under challenging conditions. | 