Merlin Securities, a broker dealer specializing in technology driven prime brokerage services, is kicking off 2008 the way it ended 2007: on a high note. The firm today said that Sequoia Capital has made a $20 million investment in an expansion round of financing.

“It’s seemingly a small amount but if you consider the fact that the company is already profitable, the money is really growth capital and will be used to further enhance our technology product and beef up our sales and marketing efforts,” said Aaron Vermut, a partner at Merlin. “This investment validates our model and signals to the market that we’re here to stay and service hedge funds.”   

Vermut added that the firm, which began operating in 2004, yesterday crossed the 200 hedge fund client mark. The investment by Sequoia Capital comes after a year of growth and recognition for Merlin Securities. In 2007, Merlin was ranked first in an industry survey as the favorite prime broker for hedge funds with less than $1 billion in assets managers.