By Ken Tarbous
March 19, 2010
The lessons Scott Warrender has learned in the boxing ring have served him well in his career.
The managing director and sector head for oilfield services and downstream refining and marketing at Bank of America Merrill Lynch posted a winning record as an amateur boxer.
He once trained at the famed Gleason’s Gym in Brooklyn, and he fought in the prestigious Golden Gloves tournament.
“Investment banking, from my perspective, is very much a marathon and not a sprint,” Warrender said. “It takes significant effort over an extended
period of time, both during early career development and in building client
elationships at a senior level. That is why I think many people decide not to stick it through to the endgame.
“I think boxing was very much the same way. I saw a lot of folks who got into it, and before they possessed the requisite skills, they wanted to get into the ring to see what they could do. When the end result was inevitably bad, they quickly moved on to other pursuits.”
In late 2002, he answered the call to help B of A establish an oilfield services and refining and marketing franchise in Houston. He called on employees and resources from elsewhere in the Charlotte company to help in this effort, and he hired professionals from outside the company.
In the years it took to build the Houston operation, B of A was an unknown entity in that industry, and he and his team had to fight the notion that his company was nothing more than a lender.
In addition to the usual start-up and buildout concerns, Warrender had to form and nourish relationships in Houston’s well-established and tight-knit energy community.
When he took over the coverage of the oilfield services and refining and marketing sectors, B of A had never been the book runner for a single capital markets transaction or provided
advisory services within either sector.
Warrender and his team established a foothold in markets such as investment grade, high-yield and convertible debt, equities and IPOs. Also, the group provides M&A advice for buyers and sellers.
He gives credit to his colleagues and supervisors and says they had the patience to stand and fight to win the mandates that have helped the franchise grow.
Title: managing director, sector head for oil field services and refining and marketing
Company: Bank of America Merrill Lynch
Age: 36
Time with Company: 8 years
