Jefferies Financial Group Inc. is an American

financial services Financial services are the Service (economics), economic services provided by the finance industry, which encompasses a broad range of businesses that manage money, including credit unions, banks, credit-card companies, insurance companies, acco ...

company based in New York City and listed on the Fortune 1000.

Investments

The company's major holdings are as follows:

Financial Services

Jefferies Group Jefferies Group LLC is an American multinational independent investment bank and financial services company that is headquartered in New York City. The firm provides clients with capital markets and financial advisory services, institutional brok ...

(100%) - investment banking & capital markets * Berkadia Commercial Mortgage (50/50 joint venture with Berkshire Hathaway) - commercial mortgage banking, investment sales and servicing *HomeFed (65% ownership) - Builder of Master Planned Communities, Income Properties, Land Holdings *FXCM (49.9%) - online foreign exchange trading *Foursight Capital (100%) - vehicle finance

Others

HRG Group HRG Group, Inc., formerly Harbinger Group Inc. and Zapata Corporation, is a holding company based in Rochester, New York, having originated from an oil company started by a group including future U.S. president George H. W. Bush. In 2009, it w ...

(23%) - insurance and consumer products * Vitesse Energy (96%) - oil and gas exploration and development * Juneau Energy (98%) - oil and gas exploration and development * Garcadia Holdings (75%, Joint venture with Ken Garff Automotive Group) - automobile dealerships * Linkem (57%) - fixed wireless broadband services * Golden Queen (35%) - a gold and silver mining project * Idaho Timber (100%) - manufacturing * National Beef Packing Company (79%) - food producer

History

In 1970, Ian Cumming and Joseph S. Steinberg both graduated in from

Harvard Business School Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate business school of Harvard University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is consistently ranked among the top business schools in the world and offers a large full-time MBA p ...

and went to work for Carl Marks & Company, an investment bank. In 1979, they gained control of Talcott National Corporation, sold the James Talcott Factors division, and, in 1980, they renamed the company Leucadia. In 1984, the company made a $61 million profit on its $77 million investment in Avco Corporation by forcing the sale of the company to Textron. In 1991, the company acquired insurer Colonial Penn from Florida Power & Light for $150 million. In 1997, the company sold the life insurance division of Colonial Penn to Conseco for $460 million and sold the auto insurance division of Colonial Penn to GE Capital for $950 million. In 1998, the company sold Charter National Life Insurance and Intramerica Life Insurance to

Allstate The Allstate Corporation is an American insurance company, headquartered in Northfield Township, Illinois, near Northbrook since 1967. Founded in 1931 as part of Sears, Roebuck and Co., it was spun off in 1993 but still partially owned by S ...

. In 2002, the company received a 44% stake in WilTel Communications Group as a result of a bankruptcy reorganization. In May 2003, the company made an offer to acquire the remaining shares of WilTel Communications Group that it did not already own. In August 2003, after increasing its offer, the company acquired the remaining shares of WilTel Communications Group. In September 2003, the company acquired RehabWorks. In January 2004, the company financed Pershing Square Capital Management, a hedge fund managed by Bill Ackman. In July 2004, the company sought, but failed, to buy a controlling stake in MCI Communications. In September 2004, the company sold its stake in MCI for a $20 million profit. In 2005, the company sold WilTel Communications Group to Level 3 Communications for a $180 million profit. In 2007, the company acquired ResortQuest International from Gaylord Hotels for $35 million. In 2009, the company entered into a 50/50 joint venture with Berkshire Hathaway called Berkadia, which acquired the North American loan origination and servicing business of Capmark Financial Group. In 2010, the company sold ResortQuest International to Wyndham Worldwide for $56 million in cash. In 2011, the company acquired a 79% interest in National Beef Packing Company for $867.9 million. In 2012, the company proposed building a $3 billion

syngas Syngas, or synthesis gas, is a mixture of hydrogen and carbon monoxide, in various ratios. The gas often contains some carbon dioxide and methane. It is principly used for producing ammonia or methanol. Syngas is combustible and can be used as ...

facility in south Chicago to convert coal and petroleum waste into natural gas; however, the plant never received legislative approval. In 2013, the company merged with

and Richard Handler became chief executive officer of the company. In 2015, the company made an investment in FXCM after FXCM suffered losses due to the appreciation of the

Swiss Franc The Swiss franc is the currency and legal tender of Switzerland and Liechtenstein. It is also legal tender in the Italian exclave of Campione d'Italia which is surrounded by Swiss territory. The Swiss National Bank (SNB) issues banknotes and the f ...

. In 2016, the company restructured its investment in FXCM. In May 2018, the company was renamed Jefferies Financial Group.

References

External links

{{Authority control Companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange Publicly traded companies based in New York City Financial services companies of the United States