A group of six former SVB Private advisors have joined Cerity Partners, a New York-based hybrid registered investment advisor with about $62 billion in client assets, according to public filings. The advisors were all part of the old KLS Professional Advisors Group in New York, an RIA acquired by Boston Private in 2004. SVB acquired Boston Private in 2021.
The advisors moving over to Cerity include Michael McCarville; Tara Carley, a senior managing director at SVB; Tara Vagnone, a director; Amanda Dekki, a managing director at SVB; and Andrew Hoercher, director, secretary of the KLS Investment Committee at SVB Private. WealthManagement.com previously reported Susan Matlow, a managing director at SVB, also joined Cerity.
Much of Cerity’s business comes from high-net-worth individuals; the firm also has a significant number of institutional clients. A spokesman for Cerity did not return a request for comment by press time.
Financial advisors who were part of SVB’s wealth management unit, SVB Private, continue to scatter in the wake of the bank’s collapse. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. announced earlier this week that First Citizens BancShares Inc. would buy Silicon Valley Bank.
The private wealth division, which until recently managed some $17 billion in assets, initially was going to be auctioned off as a separate division, with bids due last Wednesday. That didn't happen, and First Citizens will acquire all units of the bank.
But what remains of the private wealth division of SVB, the smallest of the bank's four businesses, is still unclear. One industry source with knowledge of the sale process, who declined to be named, said SVB Private was “a falling knife,” and that its assets had dwindled to less than $8 billion over the past couple of weeks, due to advisors and clients leaving the firm.
The wealth management business unit at the bank was not profitable, with the exception of the old KLS team, sources said. Those advisors had higher-quality, high-net-worth-focused services, according to a source, and priced the services accordingly. Most of SVB’s advisors have more retail-focused books and were less profitable, the source confirmed.
In a presentation on the acquisition, First Citizens said the addition of SVB Private allows it to more quickly implement its expansion into wealth management, providing a strong foothold in the Northeast.
Reporter Ali Hibbs contributed to this report.
