Movers & shakers: Feb. 19, 2014

SunTrust Robinson Humphrey Inc. made four hires in equity research and capital markets.

Inder M. Singh and Sandy Draper joined the equity research department, while Andor Andy Laszlo and Terence O’Malley joined the equity origination group. O’Malley is a director while the rest are managing directors.

Singh joined STRH’s New York office from Comcast Corp. where he was senior vice president of finance, strategy and business intelligence. Before that, he was vice president of corporate portfolio management and long-range planning at Cisco Systems Inc. where he was a member of the CEO’s operating committee, co-led its venture investment committee and led its three-year planning cycle. Singh was also a senior analyst at Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. and Prudential Financial Inc.

Draper was previously an equity analyst at STRH from 1998 to 2003, and rejoins the firm in Atlanta after more than six years with Raymond James Financial Inc. He has specialized in the healthcare information technology sector.

Laszlo hails from Lazard Capital Markets, where he was head of corporate underwriting and business development and was a member of the firm’s operating and underwriting committees. Prior to that, he ran the technology, media and telecom equity origination efforts at Banc of America Securities LLC and Lehman Brothers.

O’Malley was most recently a member of the equity-linked origination effort at Wells Fargo Securities LLC, focusing on alternative capital solutions, private and public convertible origination and convertible restructuring.

Quantitative equity manager Convergence Investment Partners tapped Justin Neuberg as a senior analyst. He was a member of the asset allocation committee at Mariner Wealth Advisors and was the primary analyst supporting CBIZ Wealth Management’s national investment platform and model portfolios, which included individual bonds, exchange-traded funds, mutual funds and separately managed accounts.

Latham & Watkins LLP recruited corporate partner Kem Ihenacho in London. Ihenacho comes in from Clifford Chance LLP, where he advised private equity firms and their portfolio companies on U.K. and other international transactions, particularly in Africa. Ihenacho joined Clifford Chance as an associate in 1999 and was named a partner in 2007.

In May, Latham hired David Walker, former global head of private equity at Clifford Chance. Private equity partner Tom Evans arrived from CC in October.

Fund governance firm DMS Offshore Investment Services has expanded its FATCA task force.

In the wake of the Great Recession, offshore tax dodging has become one of the U.S. government’s focal points and the piece of legislation that has been delayed since January 2013 is expected to come to fruition in July. Banks and businesses are trying to get a grip on the workings of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), something the IRS itself may have trouble with as the complicated filings pour in.

An explanation from Deloitte LLC states: The legislative intent of FATCA is to ensure there is no gap in the ability of the U.S. government to determine the ownership of U.S. assets in foreign accounts. As such, this revenue raising provision — which was originally enacted as a part of the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (HIRE) Act (Pub. L. No. 111-147) — is expected to significantly impact the systems and operations of both U.S. and non-U.S. companies. While the FATCA guidance with respect to documentation and reporting has not been finalized to date, companies will likely need to make modifications to their internal systems, control frameworks, processes and procedures for timely compliance with these regulations on or before their effective date of July 1.

DMS formed a task force to help foreign financial institutions, or FFIs, navigate the new legislation, which is expected to put tremendous administrative and cost burdens on hedge funds and managers, the firm said. To that end, it hired Alaina Danley, formerly director of finance at Bain Capital, and Jennifer Dimitri, formerly director of investment compliance of the University of North Carolina endowment system. The team, now consisting of seven members with experience in compliance, law, accounting, finance and technology, is led by former Appleby senior partner Peter Stafford.

DMS founder Don Seymour said in a statement, This legislation will transform the investment funds industry and dramatically impact investors with offshore accounts.

Two of several points of contention with FATCA are that it may hinder foreign relations and investment in U.S. assets. The legislation was named by Aite Group LLC as the most significant regulation affecting the hedge fund landscape. DMS says FATCA requires FFIs to report information to the IRS about financial accounts held by U.S. taxpayers, or by foreign entities in which U.S. taxpayers hold a substantial ownership interest, or face penalties such as a 30% withholding tax.

Additionally, FFIs that fail to comply with FATCA rules could face closure of their accounts, or find themselves locked out from doing business with organizations and counterparties that interact with U.S. financial institutions and compliant FFIs.

John M. Gatti joined Manatt, Phelps & Phillips LLP’s Los Angeles office as a partner in the litigation division and will be co-chair of the entertainment litigation practice. He previously chaired that practice at Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP.

Clippings from the next column :

— Morrison & Foerster LLP hires Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. bankruptcy judge James M. Peck as co-chair of its global business restructuring and insolvency group.

— Cantor Fitzgerald Canada Corp. adds Graham Moylan as a managing director, metals and mining.

— Jim Wylie becomes head of North America for Newton Capital Management Ltd.

— Avista Advisory Group taps Lily Qian and Ravi Shankar as head of coverage for Southeast Asia and India, respectively.

— Battery Ventures names Chelsea Stoner as a general partner.