Washington, DC (September 18, 2006) -- FOCUS Enterprises, Inc., a national middle market investment banking firm providing merger, acquisition, and corporate finance services, announced that John Runningen has joined the firm as a Partner. He will be based in the firm’s Atlanta Southeastern Regional headquarters office, which is located in the Atlanta Financial Center.

Mr. Runningen brings twenty-five years of entrepreneurial and investment banking experience. Mr. Runningen has conducted 80 separate investment banking and M&A transactions for 44 companies with an aggregate value of $18.6 billion. He has served clients in the IT, Healthcare, Telecommunications and Manufacturing industries.

Prior to joining FOCUS, Mr. Runningen had been the Managing Director of Runningen Associates, LLC, an M&A firm that handled corporate advisory, strategic planning, and capital raising for start-ups and early stage growth companies nationwide. Mr. Runningen’s prior experience also includes being the Senior Vice President, Investor Relations at WebMD (NASDAQ: HLTH) where he managed the company’s Wall Street research and investment banking relationships. Additionally, Mr. Runningen served as a General Partner at Cordova Ventures, a $250 million venture fund.

“We are delighted with John’s decision to join our firm as he brings a wealth of experience in the healthcare sector to FOCUS. John’s operations experience and his deep transactional experience will be ideal for FOCUS middle market clients” said Marshall Graham, Chairman of FOCUS.
Mr. Runningen received his BA degree, magna cum laude, from Luther College. He earned his MBA degree in Finance and Marketing, magna cum laude, from the Freeman School of Business at Tulane University.

About FOCUS Enterprises, Inc.

FOCUS Enterprises, Inc. provides a range of middle market investment banking services across the U.S. with an emphasis on mergers, acquisitions, divestitures and corporate finance. FOCUS is headquartered in Washington, DC, with regional offices in Atlanta, Chicago and San Francisco. FOCUS specializes in transactions for entities with $5-300 million in revenues, serving entrepreneurs, corporate owners, and various types of investors. All 23 FOCUS partners are seasoned operating and financial executives with extensive transaction experience. FOCUS publishes a monthly complimentary email newsletter.