Sheila C. Bair to Speak at Stifel Nicolaus 2011 Bank Conference

ST. LOUIS, MO--(Marketwire - Aug 8, 2011) - Stifel Financial Corp. (NYSE: SF) today announced that The Honorable Sheila C. Bair, former Chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation ("FDIC") from June 2006 through July 2011, has been confirmed as the keynote speaker at the Stifel Nicolaus 2011 Bank Conference on November 2, 2011 in New York City.

"We are honored and excited to welcome Sheila Bair at our Bank Conference given her insight regarding the current state of the financial services industry. Her historical perspective on the recent financial crisis is of great relevance to Stifel's clients. Institutional investors will gain deep insight from Ms. Bair's perspectives on the opportunities and challenges facing the banking sector in the post crisis era," commented Ronald J. Kruszewski, Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Stifel Financial.

The Honorable Sheila C. Bair served as the 19th Chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation for a five-year term, from June 2006 through July 2011. Before joining the FDIC in 2006, she was the Dean's Professor of Financial Regulatory Policy for the Isenberg School of Management at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst since 2002. Other career experience includes serving as Assistant Secretary for Financial Institutions at the U.S. Department of the Treasury (2001 to 2002), Senior Vice President for Government Relations of the New York Stock Exchange (1995 to 2000), a Commissioner and Acting Chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (1991 to 1995), and Research Director, Deputy Counsel, and Counsel to Senate Majority Leader Robert Dole (1981 to 1988). Ms. Bair received a number of prestigious honors during her tenure as FDIC Chairman. In 2008 and 2009, Forbes magazine named Ms. Bair as the second most powerful woman in the world, after Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel. Also, in 2009, she was named one of TIME Magazine's "Time 100" most influential people, awarded the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award, and received the Hubert H. Humphrey Civil Rights Award.

The one-day conference will showcase presentations from over 40 established public and private companies in the large- and mid-cap bank space, as well as community and conversion banks, and regional banks. Additionally, Stifel Nicolaus' eight bank analysts will offer insight into the major trends impacting the bank sector.

For more information, please contact your Stifel Nicolaus representative.

About Stifel Financial Corp.
Stifel Financial Corp. (NYSE: SF) is a financial services holding company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri that conducts its banking, securities, and financial services business through several wholly owned subsidiaries. Stifel clients are primarily served in the U.S. through 314 offices in 44 states and the District of Columbia through Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated and Thomas Weisel Partners LLC, and in Canada through Stifel Nicolaus Canada Inc. Clients in the United Kingdom and Europe are served through offices of Stifel Nicolaus Limited and Stifel Nicolaus Europe Limited (formerly Thomas Weisel Partners International Limited). Each of the broker-dealer affiliates provides securities brokerage, investment banking, trading, investment advisory, and related financial services to individual investors, professional money managers, businesses, and municipalities. Stifel Bank & Trust offers a full range of consumer and commercial lending solutions. To learn more about Stifel, please visit the company's web site at www.stifel.com.