Mr. Kaplan joined Ladenburg Thalmann & Co. Inc. as a Managing Director in September 2004 and was promoted to Head of Capital Markets in December 2011. Mr. Kaplan co-heads the investment banking group at Ladenburg Thalmann which focuses on blank check companies or SPACs. Prior to joining Ladenburg Thalmann, Mr. Kaplan had substantial experience advising companies in the healthcare services industry. From 1999 to 2004, Mr. Kaplan was a Co-Founder and a Partner of River Capital Partners, a healthcare services focused M&A advisory firm. From 1996 to 1999, he was a Vice President in the Healthcare Investment Banking Group of Prudential Securities. From 1993 to 1996 he was an associate at Jefferies & Company, primarily focused on Healthcare M&A. He previously worked at auditing firms Pricewaterhouse and Deloitte & Touche. Over the course of his career, Mr. Kaplan has managed over 500 public offerings including but not limited to IPOs and follow-on offerings as well as advising on numerous merger and acquisition transactions. Mr. Kaplan received a BSBA from Babson College and an MBA from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill.