MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 21, 2008--Piper Jaffray & Co. announced it has hired Steve Buell as the new head of investment research to lead the firm's investment research team. Buell, who has nearly 10 years of management experience in equity research, will be based in the firm's New York office and will also work out of the firm's headquarters in Minneapolis.

Buell joins Piper Jaffray from Thomas Weisel Partners LLC where he was a senior managing director and head of research. Previously, he held similar roles as global director of research at Prudential Equity Group, Inc.; director of research at Dreyfus Corporation; and global director of research at ING Barings/Furman Selz. Prior to ING, he gained experience as a pharmaceutical and biotech analyst at several firms, including Oppenheimer & Co.; Kidder Peabody; and EF Hutton.

"Steve brings a wide range of perspectives from many different firms to Piper Jaffray and also has deep relationships in the business," said Bob Peterson, head of equities at Piper Jaffray. "His high level of experience and leadership ability will help us drive our strategic efforts in equity research and greatly benefit the investment research team at the firm."

"The investment research team at Piper Jaffray comprises some of the best equity research analysts in the industry and I am excited to lead this experienced group in providing unique and value-added investment ideas to the firm's institutional client base," said Buell.

Among his many academic honors, Buell earned a bachelor's degree in biology from the University of Colorado, a Ph.D. in neuroscience from the School of Medicine at the University of Rochester, and completed his National Institutes of Health (NIH) postdoctoral fellowship at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. He currently serves as the chairman of the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association's (SIFMA) research committee and is a member of SIFMA's institutional brokerage committee. Buell previously served on SIFMA's task force on unbundling and commission transparency.

About Piper Jaffray

Piper Jaffray Companies is a leading, international middle-market investment bank and institutional securities firm, serving the needs of middle-market corporations, private equity groups, public entities, nonprofit clients and institutional investors. Founded in 1895, Piper Jaffray provides a comprehensive set of products and services, including equity and debt capital markets products; public finance services; mergers and acquisitions advisory services; high-yield and structured products; institutional equity and fixed-income sales and trading; and equity and high-yield research. With headquarters in Minneapolis, Piper Jaffray has 25 offices across the United States and international locations in London, Hong Kong, and Shanghai. Piper Jaffray & Co. is the firm's principal operating subsidiary. (NYSE: PJC) (http://www.piperjaffray.com)

Since 1895. Member SIPC and FINRA.

(C) 2008 Piper Jaffray & Co., 800 Nicollet Mall, Suite 800, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55402-7020

CONTACT: Piper Jaffray & Co.
Media Relations:
Andrea Young, 612-303-6697

SOURCE: Piper Jaffray & Co.