On January 3, 2020, pursuant to the Agreement and Plans of Merger, dated as of July 9, 2019, by and among Piper Sandler Companies (formerly known as Piper Jaffray Companies), SOP Holdings, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company and certain of its subsidiaries, including Sandler O'Neill & Partners L.P., a Delaware limited partnership (collectively, Sandler O'Neill"), and the other parties thereto, the company completed its previously announced acquisition of 100% of the outstanding ownership interests of Sandler O'Neill. In accordance with the Merger Agreement, the aggregate purchase price paid by the Company to the sellers of Sandler O'Neill was $485 million (the Consideration"). Effective as of the Closing, James J. Dunne III, Senior Managing Principal of Sandler O'Neill, has been appointed to the positions of Vice Chairman of the Company and Senior Managing Principal of the financial services group of PS&Co. (the Financial Services Group"), and Jonathan J. Doyle, Senior Managing Principal of Sandler O'Neill, has been appointed to the Company's Board of Directors (the Board") and to the positions of Vice Chairman of the Company and Senior Managing Principal of the Financial Services Group, which he will lead. In addition, pursuant to the terms of the Merger Agreement, a second, mutually agreed individual will be appointed to the Board in the first quarter of 2021. Pursuant to the terms and conditions of the Merger Agreement, at the Closing, the Company appointed Jonathan J. Doyle, Senior Managing Principal of Sandler O'Neill, to the Board for an initial term beginning at the Closing, and expiring at the Company's 2020 annual meeting of shareholders. As an employee director, Mr. Doyle will not serve on any committees of the Board and will not receive any additional compensation for his service as a member of the Board. In connection with the Transaction, Mr. Doyle entered into a letter agreement (the Letter Agreement") with the Company and PS&Co., pursuant to which Mr. Doyle has been appointed to serve as (i) Vice Chairman of the Company, (ii) Senior Managing Principal and Head of the Financial Services Group, and (iii) a member of the Board. Under the terms and conditions of the Letter Agreement, Mr. Doyle's employment with the Company became effective as of the Closing.
Piper Sandler Companies is an investment bank and institutional securities firm, which serves the needs of corporations, private equity groups, public entities, non-profit entities and institutional investors in the United States and internationally. The Company provides a set of products and services, including financial advisory services, equity and debt capital markets products, public finance services, institutional brokerage services, fundamental equity and macro research services, fixed income services, and alternative asset management strategies. It provides investment banking services, institutional sales and trading services for various equity and fixed income products, and research services. For its corporate clients and financial sponsors, the Company provides advisory services, which includes mergers and acquisitions (M&A), equity and debt private placements, and debt and restructuring advisory. It also helps raise capital through equity and debt financing.