SCOTTSDALE, November 30—Investor relations firm Christensen & Associates is merging with Equity Market Services, a New York-based consulting firm that provides technical and legal advice to foreign companies on equity structures in the United States. The two firms will operate under the Christensen & Associates name with Rene Vanguestaine, president and CEO of EMS, joining Howard Christensen as co-chairman.
 
According to Christense, C&A is using the merger to expand its U.S. clients to help non-U.S. companies gain visibility in North America. The transaction also expands C&A’s targeting, outreach and delivery, financial communications, technology, message development, market research and meeting logistics capabilities.
 
“C&A is perfectly positioned to leverage its service platform overseas to fill product and service gaps,” says Vanguestaine. “Foreign companies seeking exposure in the U.S. find it challenging to get the attention of domestic investors in this highly competitive market. C&A offers an exceptional framework to target the right investors, communicate a foreign company’s strategy and disclose the information required by U.S. investors.”
 
Vanguestaine was previously a managing director responsible for JP Morgan’s global American Depositary Receipt business.
 
At the same time, Susan Herman—former executive vice president at Canadian investor relations firm Stylus Strategic Communications—joins C&A as an executive vice president, and Jeff Christensen, who helped develop many of C&A’s products and services, rejoins the firm to anchor east coast activities as an executive VP.