These private transactions typically give the Laurus funds warrants for the right to purchase stock at a discount to market prices. The funds seek double digit returns with lower volatility than the broader markets.

Dennis Pollack, senior managing director of Laurus-Valens, said Thursday that veteran investment banker Kendall Raine has joined the firm as a partner and senior managing director.

“Kendall‘s background will offer Laurus-Valens new insight and opportunities during this volatile time in the market,” said Pollack.

Raine, who will oversee a variety of strategic and capital markets initiatives, joins from A. G. Edwards, where he was managing director in the investment banking department. At A.G. Edwards, he was responsible for more than 100 advisory and capital markets transactions for business development, mortgage, and consumer finance companies, private equity firms and other specialty finance companies.

Prior to Edwards, Raine worked for Bear Stearns as associate director responsible for investment banking relationships with Midwest depository institutions. Before that, he was chief executive officer of Los Angeles-based United Pacific Bank and senior executive to the banks’ parent company.  Raine began his banking career as a calling officer in the Asia division of Chemical Bank.

Laurus-Valens, one of the nation’s largest investors in penny stocks, has approximately $1.7 billion in assets under management.  Laurus invests in private investment in public equity, or Pipes, a financing vehicle for small, cash-strapped companies. Hedge funds use Pipes to buy shares at a discounted price and can quickly resell them.

Last March, Laurus Capital Management LLC launched Valens Fund to invest in publicly traded small and micro-cap companies seeking cost effective growth capital.

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