James K. Schmidt

Diamond Hill Financial Trends Fund, Inc. is a diversified closed-end management investment company. Its investment objectives are to provide long-term capital growth by investing in companies selling for less than and shorting companies selling for more than its appraisal of intrinsic value; and seek positive total return on both long and short positions. The company was founded on July 3, 1989 and is headquartered in Columbus, OH.

KBW LLC provides investment banking and financial services. It offers mergers, acquisitions, strategic advisory services, equity and fixed income securities offerings, structured finance and mutual thrift conversions, asset management, securities underwriting, and related investment advisory services. The firm focuses on banking and insurance companies, real estate companies and real estate investment trust, broker-dealers, mortgage banks, asset management companies, and specialty finance companies. Its business is organized into three general service offerings: Investment banking, including mergers and acquisitions and other strategic advisory services, equity and fixed income securities offerings, and mutual thrift conversions, Equity and Fixed Income sales and trading; and Research that provides fundamental, objective analysis that identifies investment opportunities and helps its investor customers make investment decisions. The company was founded by Harry Keefe Jr., Gene Bruyette, and Norbert Woods on June 11, 1962 and is headquartered in New York, NY.

Boston-based John Hancock Advisers, Inc. (JHA) is the mutual fund affiliate of John Hancock Financial Services, Inc. and manages the John Hancock family of retail and institutional mutual funds, as well as separate equity portfolios for private accounts and retirement plans for individual and institutional investors. In 2003, Manulife Financial Corp. (TSX, NYSE: MFC) and John Hancock Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE: JHF) announced that they would merge and would thus create a leading global insurance franchise. The combined company will market products and services under multiple brands including John Hancock in the US and Manulife in Canada and the US.

Manulife Investment Management (US) LLC (Manulife IM-US) is a SEC-registered investment advisor headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts. The firm was founded in 1968 and is a subsidiary of John Hancock Subsidiaries LLC, ultimately held by Manulife Financial Corp. (NYSE, TSE: MFC), a Canadian-based financial services firm. Manulife IM-US manages assets for a variety of institutional and other types of clients, such as public and private pension funds, foundations, mandatory provident funds outside the US, financial institutions, investment trusts, separately managed account clients, and high net-worth individuals. The firm also manages registered funds, which includes UCITS, US and Canadian open- and closed-end mutual funds and privately-offered unregistered investment funds.

Part of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc., Hartford Insurance Company of the Midwest is a company that sells insurance products. Hartford Insurance Company of the Midwest is based in Hartford, CT. The CEO of the company is Michael Ross Fisher.

Vinfen Corp. provides services to children, youth and adults with psychiatric, developmental and behavioral disabilities. Its services include mental health care, intellectual and developmental disability and brain injury care services. The company was founded in 1977 and is headquartered in Cambridge, MA.

Herald National Bank provides services to the commercial and private banking needs of small to mid-size businesses and high-net-worth individuals in the New York metropolitan area. It offers personal and business services. The company is headquartered in New York, NY.