Cowen Announces Investment Banking Appointments

NEW YORK, Oct 14, 2011 (BUSINESS WIRE) —

Cowen Group, Inc. (“Cowen”) (NASDAQ: COWN) today announced two
appointments within its investment banking platform, Cowen and Company.
John Nelson has joined the firm as Managing Director and Head of
Aerospace, Defense and Industrials Investment Banking and Jeff Porphy
has been appointed Head of Mergers and Acquisitions. Mr. Porphy will
maintain his role as Head of Financial Sponsors Coverage. Both Mr.
Nelson and Mr. Porphy are based in New York and report to Kevin Raidy
and Chris McCabe, Co-Heads of Investment Banking for Cowen and Company.

“I am very pleased to welcome John Nelson back to Cowen,” said Jeff
Solomon, Chief Executive Officer of Cowen and Company. “From 2007 to
early 2011, John played a significant role in the initial build-out of
Cowen’s Aerospace & Defense investment banking platform. John is an
accomplished banker with an impressive transaction track record and a
wealth of relationships across his coverage universe. We look forward to
his contributions.”

He continued, “I am also delighted to announce the appointment of Jeff
Porphy as Cowen’s Head of Mergers and Acquisitions. He has been a
valuable member of the banking team and, through his leadership, we have
taken important steps in enhancing our coverage and winning mandates.
With over twenty years of industry experience and a deep understanding
of our advisory capabilities, Jeff is the ideal candidate to lead our
mergers and acquisitions practice.”

John Nelson re-joins Cowen from Macquarie Capital where he served as a
Managing Director in the firm’s Industrials Investment Banking group.
Mr. Nelson served as Head of Cowen and Company’s Aerospace & Defense
Investment Banking group from August 2007 to April 2011. Prior to
joining Cowen in 2007, Mr. Nelson was a Managing Director in the Mergers
& Acquisitions Group of Friedman Billings Ramsey (the acquirer of Legacy
Partners Group), where he was Head of Aerospace, Defense and IT
Services. Previously, Mr. Nelson was a Managing Director at Bank of
America Securities, where he was Head of the Technology & Business
Services Corporate Investment Banking Group from 2000 to 2002.

Mr. Porphy joined Cowen in March 2010 as Head of Financial Sponsors
Coverage and subsequently assumed responsibility for Industrials
Investment Banking at Cowen and Company. Prior to this, he served as
Head of Financial Sponsor Idea Generation and Corporate Advisory M&A at
Barclays Capital. Before Barclays, Mr. Porphy was Managing Director and
Head of Financial Sponsors M&A and Co-Head of Middle Market M&A at
Credit Suisse.

About Cowen Group, Inc.

Cowen Group, Inc. is a diversified financial services firm and, together
with its consolidated subsidiaries, provides alternative investment
management, investment banking, research, and sales and trading services
through its two business segments: Ramius and its affiliates makes up
the Company’s alternative investment management segment, while Cowen and
Company is its broker-dealer segment. Its alternative investment
management products, solutions and services include hedge funds,
replication products, managed futures funds, fund of funds, real estate,
health care royalty funds and cash management services. Cowen and
Company offers industry focused investment banking for growth-oriented
companies, domain knowledge-driven research and a sales and trading
platform for institutional investors. Founded in 1918, the firm is
headquartered in New York and has offices located in major financial
centers around the world.

SOURCE: Cowen Group, Inc.

Sard Verbinnen & Co
Dan Gagnier, 212-687-8080