(Bloomberg) — KCG Holdings Inc. is reorganizing its London sales staff following the arrival of former Goldman Sachs Group Inc. executive Rob Crane at the brokerage and automated trading firm. Four sales staff are planning to leave.
The company is refocusing its sales coverage to eliminate overlap while cross-selling its services to customers, according to an internal memo obtained by Bloomberg News. No personnel have been fired and talks are continuing on the departures, according to a person familiar with the discussions who asked not to identified, citing confidentiality.
We will expect our best sales people to be selling KCG in all its forms, KCGs European chief executive officer, Phil Allison, said in the memo. Of course everyone will have areas of greater expertise, but by selling the entire firm we can create more interesting and higher value roles, and deepen client relationships.
Crane, who is head of execution services and platforms at KCG Europe, is putting his stamp on the market maker after joining during the summer. He was previously co-head of electronic trading for Europe, the Middle East and Africa at Goldman. At KCG, he reports to Allison, who previously worked at UBS Group AG.
The company was formed in 2013 when Getco LLC bought Knight Capital, which was forced to find a buyer following losses tied to trading glitches that brought it near bankruptcy. KCGs share price has risen about 4.5 percent since the merger, compared with a 19 percent gain for the Standard & Poors 500 Index, as investors await CEO Daniel Colemans plans to be fully implemented.
