$80B MAI Capital Hires KeyBank, BofA Alum Amy Brady
MAI Capital Management, a Cleveland-based registered investment advisor with $80.4 billion in client assets, has hired former KeyBank and Bank of America information and technology executive Amy Brady as a managing partner to oversee strategic initiatives, including AI optimization, workflow efficiencies and the firm’s women and wealth strategy, the company announced Tuesday.
Brady, who brings more than 30 years of enterprise executive experience, will join MAI’s Office of Managing Partners and report directly to Chairman & CEO Rick Buoncore. In her previous roles at KeyBank and Bank of America, Brady led technology, service centers, operations and digital transformation efforts, including enterprise AI adoption, according to the announcement.
“Amy has spent her career building high-performing teams and driving growth and innovation across some of the world’s largest financial institutions,” Buoncore said in a statement. “Her enterprise experience across technology, operations and growth will be invaluable as we strengthen our platform and work toward our goal of becoming the best RIA in the industry.”
Brady will serve as the national leader of MAI’s strategy focused on women and wealth, bringing the firm’s programs and services to market for what MAI sees as one of the fastest-growing segments in the wealth management industry, the company said.
As of June 30, MAI had 42 offices in the U.S., over 700 employees, $73.8 billion in assets under management, and $6.6 billion in assets under advisement.
Cyndeo Wealth Partners Names Casey Jorgensen Chief Growth Officer
Cyndeo Wealth Partners, a St. Petersburg, Fla.-based registered investment advisor with about $3.7 billion in AUM, has hired Casey Jorgensen to be chief growth officer in charge of advisor recruiting, mergers and acquisitions and organic growth initiatives, the RIA announced Tuesday.
Jorgensen joins Cyndeo from Dynasty Financial Partners, where she most recently served as director, relationship management and head of the Dynasty Institute for Adaptive Leadership. Cyndeo is a Dynasty firm, and also a minority investment for Rise Growth Partners, which took a stake in the firm in March.
“Casey already knows our business, our advisors, and the vision we have for Cyndeo,” Matt Kilgroe, president and CEO of Cyndeo, said in a statement. “She has spent years helping independent advisory firms navigate the opportunities and complexities that come with growth, but what sets her apart is that she understands growth is ultimately about people.”
Jorgensen advised some of Dynasty’s largest network firms, including Cyndeo, on organic and inorganic growth, talent strategy, operational efficiency and profitability, according to the announcement.
Dynasty has a minority equity investment in Cyndeo alongside Rise Growth and is Cyndeo’s technology and investment platform partner.
Merit Financial Hires First Chief Technology Officer
Merit Financial Advisors, an Alpharetta, Ga.-based hybrid registered investment advisor overseeing $30.1 billion in client assets, has appointed John Rajes as its first chief technology officer to oversee the firm’s enterprise technology strategy, including technology architecture, integrations, data and artificial intelligence, the RIA announced Tuesday.
Rajes, who joined Merit on July 13, will report to Chief Operating Officer Chrissy Lee and focus on developing a more unified digital experience for Merit’s advisors and employees, according to the firm.
“Technology is now central to virtually every aspect of how we support our advisors, integrate new teams and create scale across the firm,” Lee said in a statement. “John brings the wealth management experience, technology expertise and strategic perspective we need to connect the investments we are making today with a much broader roadmap for where Merit is going.”
Rajes most recently operated an independent consulting practice, and before that was head of strategic partnerships at LPL Financial, where he was responsible for the firm’s fintech partnership ecosystem of about 90 providers.
Coldstream Grows Management Team With Two Appointments
Coldstream, a Bellevue, Wash.-based employee-owned financial services firm overseeing more than $15 billion in total client assets, has hired Megan Hannah as chief client experience officer and promoted Ian Curtiss to lead the firm’s Wealth Strategy Group, the RIA announced Tuesday.
Hannah will work across planning, investment strategy and client service and join the firm’s Guiding Coalition, while Curtiss will lead the Wealth Strategy Group’s continued development as it works with Coldstream’s wealth managers and clients through planning and investment strategy.
Anne Marie Stonich, who helped build Coldstream’s Wealth Strategy Group and family office capabilities, will serve as co-chief client experience officer with Hannah through the end of 2026 before focusing on expanding the firm’s presence in Bend, Ore., and advancing the firm’s family office capabilities, according to Coldstream.
Hannah, a CFA charterholder, was most recently chief operating officer and portfolio manager at Emerald Advisors, a Seattle-area RIA.
Curtiss has been a Coldstream wealth manager since 2021 after joining the firm from Pathstone.
“As Coldstream continues to grow, we are investing in the leadership and infrastructure needed to keep delivering the client experience our families expect from us,” CEO Kevin Fitzwilson said in a statement.
RIA Lender Live Oak Adds to Wealth Management Team
Live Oak Bank, a Wilmington, N.C.-based lender to independent and sponsor-backed RIAs, said Tuesday it had promoted Julia Wiles to its independent wealth management lending team.
Wiles had spent six years at Live Oak as an analyst, underwriter, portfolio manager, credit officer and loan officer, according to a spokesperson. She had most recently spent four years on its Sponsor Finance team, structuring private equity-backed credit facilities ranging from $2 million to more than $100 million.
“That experience matters right now,” the spokesperson wrote via email. “Nearly 300 registered investment advisors are now sponsor-backed, representing roughly $6 trillion in assets under management. We serve several sponsor-backed firms today alongside a broad base of independently owned practices, and we’re building for both.”
Wiles will focus on flexible credit lines that provide RIAs with access to capital for acquisitions, recruiting, minority equity investments and other growth strategies.
Live Oak said it had also expanded its financing in the wealth space to advisor breakaway and startup capital, advisor recruiting, debt refinancing, working capital, internal succession and acquisitions. The firm said that “demand is heaviest in succession and acquisition financing.”
