Jefferies

Handler joined Jefferies in April 1990 as a salesman and trader.^[2] He was appointed CEO on January 1, 2001^[4] and Chairman in 2002, succeeding Frank E. Baxter.^[2] Handler also is Chairman of Jefferies' Global Diversity Council.^[5] When Handler joined as CEO, Jefferies had been primarily known as a trading firm with expertise in the energy sector.^[6] As of 2022, Jefferies had become the 8th largest investment bank by revenue and the sixth busiest in mergers and acquisitions.^[7] As of 2021, Handler owned more than 7% of the stock.^[8] According to SEC filings, apart from charitable donations and tax-related sales, Mr. Handler had not sold any of his shares.^[9]

Egan-Jones report

In November 2011, ratings company Egan-Jones issued a negative report regarding Jefferies that caused a 20% decline in the Jefferies stock price minutes after the opening bell the following morning.^[10][11] Chris Kotowski of Oppenheimer & Co. made public statements pointing out figures in the Egan-Jones report that were 'so grotesquely wrong they should immediately jump off the page to anyone remotely familiar with the numbers.'^[12][13] The Egan-Jones report was described by Kotowski in his research report from November 23, 2011 titled "Another Hack Attack" as 'flat out wrong',^[14] and was followed by what Handler characterized as a multi-week public attack on Jefferies by Sean Egan.^[11] Handler and the Jefferies management team responded with unprecedented immediacy and transparency, collapsing in a matter of days 75% of a sovereign debt position that had been identified as a problem by Egan to prove the bonds were hedged and highly liquid, sharply reducing the rest of Jefferies balance sheet, and publicly addressing the accusations on an almost daily basis.^[15] This aggressive and unconventional response resulted in an eventual rebound in Jefferies share price.^[11]

On June 21, 2022, the SEC charged Egan-Jones Ratings Company with violating conflict of interest provisions in a set of separate matters in 2018 and 2019, concluding that the firm “failed to establish, maintain, and enforce policies and procedures reasonably designed to manage such conflicts of interest,”^[16] and further, that Egan himself had caused the violations.

Egan-Jones agreed to settle for a $1.7 million penalty and $146,000 of interest and disgorgement, and Egan himself separately settled for a $300,000 penalty; neither party admitted or denied the SEC’s findings.

Rescue of Knight Capital Group

In August 2012, Handler played a lead role in saving Knight Capital Group after the company suffered a $440 million loss due to a 'technology glitch.' Together with Brian Friedman, the President of Jefferies Financial Group, Handler structured and led the rescue,^[17] making Jefferies the largest shareholder with a roughly 45% stake in the company.^[18]

Merger with Leucadia

In November 2012, Jefferies announced its merger with Leucadia National Corporation, its largest shareholder and a longtime partner of Handler. In March 2013, Jefferies merged with Leucadia,^[19] and Handler became CEO of both companies.^[20] In 2018, Leucadia rebranded as Jefferies Financial Group Inc. to better reflect the company’s business focus.^[21]