By Rebecca Ungarino

As Wall Street executives descend on southeast Florida beaches for a trio of finance industry conferences this week, a small activist hedge fund that has pushed for change at U.S. banks is bearing its teeth.

The founders of Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based HoldCo Asset Management took the stage Monday at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Key Biscayne, where UBS hosted its annual conference of financial firms and investors. They outlined demands for several banks in a 69-page presentation.

The founders, Vik Ghei and Misha Zaitzeff, laid out details of private discussions they've held with lenders including Central Pacific Financial and TrustCo Bank. HoldCo also signaled that while it's pleased with changes some of the banks it holds have made, it will push for more. The fund has some $2.8 billion of assets.

Ghei and Zaitzeff said they won't pursue proxy contests at two of their holdings, KeyBank and Eastern Bankshares, after the companies made personnel and strategy changes that HoldCo was seeking. The chief executives of KeyBank and Eastern now have their support, they said.

But if either firm's board pursued actions "inconsistent with our expectations," they would "take any action that we deem necessary" to drive value for shareholders. HoldCo also wrote that it believes M&T Bank, the Buffalo, New York-based lender that analysts view as a potential acquirer, is "waiting in the wings" to purchase Eastern.

Eastern Bank didn't respond to requests for comment. A KeyBank spokeswoman declined to comment. A spokesman for M&T Bank said, "Our policy is to not comment on market rumors or speculation."

HoldCo's presentation and its presence at a large industry conference underscored the fund's growing influence on Wall Street.

Conferences like the ones held by UBS, Bank of America, and KBW in Florida this week are normally the domain of management teams, not the activist investors demanding they rip up their playbooks.

The founders' conversation Monday with UBS bank analyst Erika Najarian suggested investors are paying attention to HoldCo's moves.

The fund gained attention in 2025 when the Ohio lender Fifth Third Bancorp said it would buy Comerica -- after HoldCo had publicly pressured Fifth Third to sell itself. It was a success for HoldCo in sector that has generally steered clear of high-profile activists.

But the campaign was "a wake-up call to underperforming banks that a stronger partner might make more sense," Wells Fargo bank analyst Mike Mayo wrote to clients on Feb. 4.

As banks look for scale to stay competitive and adjust to an relaxed slate of financial regulations, bank mergers should reach the highest level in a decade, Mayo said.

HoldCo's small, influential team is poised for a busy year.

Write to Rebecca Ungarino at rebecca.ungarino@barrons.com

This content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 10, 2026 10:18 ET (15:18 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.